Now that Dr Mahathir Mohamad is no longer our prime minister, it does not mean that we need to dismantle his formula for success. Neither should we abandon his efforts and agenda for nation building, or the national posture he adopted in our relationship with neighbours and the international community.

Being a leader with sharp and penetrating powers of observation and foresight, he has put the right formula and posture in place. He has also set out the direction for us to pursue this further well into the future.

The worst that could happen is for us to try to reinvent what has been well-tested and adopted in the last 22 years and earlier. There are just too many who would like to try their luck following his departure, while testing our naivete at the same time.

It is just like the old fable where the fox told the cock that his voice would be more melodic if he closed his eyes while singing next to him.

This however does not necessarily mean that new Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has no valuable proposition to offer. In fact our country continues to be very fortunate in having the right prime minister at the right time.

Dr Mahathir's strategic posture and perspectives could be distilled as follows:

  • Restructure Malaysian society by giving special assistance to the economically less developed segments in an effort to reduce economic disparity and ensure social justice and stability.

  • Prioritise national unity at the highest level. There should be no hesitation in making unpopular decisions in order to quash any attempts that threaten the nation's integrity.

  • Promote and protect the free market economy. As we progress, less time should be spent on how the cake need to be divided, and more time on how to increase its size.

  • Create shared icons, identities, values and aspirations.

  • Stem the waning of traditional values and conscience, aggravated by the onslaught of western culture among the young and old. Incidents of crime, broken homes, and abandonment of babies and old folk must be arrested immediately.

  • Take our fate and destiny into our own hands, and be mindful of those who try to stage-manage us.

  • Address the issue of national competitiveness in a fast changing global environment.

  • Strengthen and deepen our niche in information communications technology, biotechnology, manufacturing, services, oil and gas sectors, while making agriculture and forestry competitive and sustainable. Efficient facilities and supporting agencies and institutions need to be created and constantly reviewed.

  • Develop human capital as our core resource and sustain its continued development in ensuring our lasting relevance in a fast changing environment. We need to continue to equip our people not only with the right knowledge and skill mix, but also with right personal attributes.

    • Our new prime minister is certainly a very qualified person to continue the task started by Dr Mahathir. In the process, he should also place his mark on the nation's history.