IN April/May 2018 during the run-up to the 14th General Election, a vast majority of the activist politicians in Malaysia were desperate to rid the country of the then prime minister. Partly borne of this desire, the seasoned Pakatan Harapan leadership arrived at a consensus that Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad was the best person to lead the then opposition.

They knew Dr Mahathir well with the ringside seat they had in the political arena. They also knew of his strengths and weaknesses, including his penchant to occasionally shoot from the hip.