Dr Mahathir Mohamad is making a quiet comeback to the media scene.

For the past weeks, he has reminded Malaysians to not forget the struggle and sacrifice of our forefathers, and dismissed in a cocky tone the chances of Anwar Ibrahim's return to active politics. The latter he did in Singapore, the island state which he always watches with bittersweet keenness and incurable jealousy.

Once the longest serving 'elected' leader in Asia, one of the monumental legacies of Mahathir was no doubt his iron fist on the domestic media, driven by his inborn sceptism towards freedom of expression and independent journalism, resulting in a media industry that is best remembered for its tameness and subservience.

What goes around, comes around. Since his retirement nearly a year ago, he has survived a media blackout himself, as the media professionals in this country were busy courting their new political patrons. It must have been a wilderness of sorts for a prime minister whose words, be they senseless, vengeful or discerning, made headlines day after day for 22 years.

Old faces return

The recent Umno general assembly saw the return of the old faces to the party's top leadership, and the former prime minister has been behaving cheekily again. Because the party election is widely seen as a severe setback for Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, it is not at all surprising that Mahathir is gloating over the victory of the Najib Abdul Razak faction.

I am afraid one now has to endure the frequent appearance of Mahathir in the press, just as Malaysia did for the past two decades.

The veteran has every reason to be resentful and bitter about Abdullah, whom he once saw as a safe pair of hands least likely to rock the boat and most likely to build on his 'legacies'. Instead of living up to the expectations of his political benefactor, the new prime minister raised his eyebrow by launching an 'all-out' war against corruption (which amounted to nothing much anyway).

The release of Anwar must have sent shockwaves across Umno, prompting the old forces to rally behind Najib. The upset clearly showed that an anointed leader such as Abdullah is almost always made of clay. Little wonder that Najib was delirious with joy, proclaiming to the audience that he would not stab in the back of the prime minister. Well, what he was practically saying was that although a deputy of calibre, he was resolved to not play a Brutus for now.

And, having tasted the mighty rule of Mahathir, Malaysians should be glad to know Abdullah is not another Caesar in the making.

While the English and the Malay press is rediscovering the charms of the former prime minister, the best-selling Chinese newspaper, Sin Chew Daily, keeps itself busy entertaining the MCA. Last weekend, Ong Ka Ting, the party leader, launched a campaign to promote 'life-long learning'. Sin Chew's deference is evidenced in an editorial that pays homage to the MCA. Since then, there has been a series of articles in Sin Chew that smacks of nothing but political propaganda. Some were written by Sin Chew journalists , while others were contributions from its readers whose credibility and motives are constantly in doubt.

But it does not matter who the author is, the crux of the matter is that all these articles are nothing but empty praises for the campaign. Critical analyses and objective criticisms are nowhere to be found.

Nanyang Siang Pau, supposedly an MCA media organ, is by no means slumbering. In conjunction with the MCA general assembly, the newspaper came up with an editorial, in which it commended the party for manifesting the spirit of consensus la Barisan Nasional. Not to be upstaged, Sin Chew sought to win favour with the MCA leadership by extending its heartfelt congratulations on the 'successful' holding of the general assembly.

Malay privileges

However, this much hyped up spirit of consensus as a cardinal principle cuts no ice with Ong Tee Keat, the Youth leader of the MCA, who enraged Khairy Jamaluddin, the wunderkind in Malaysian politics, by raising the issue of Malay privileges.

Am I taken aback by Khairy's snappish reaction? Not a bit, for he surely does not hope to move down the ladder and receive humiliating booing again at the next Umno general assembly. In Umno, one's political survival is only guaranteed by playing to the gallery of the ultras.

Like I said at the beginning, what goes around, comes around. I was once disdainful and sarcastic about the way Utusan Malaysia and Berita Harian were competing against one another to please their respective bosses in Umno, and now I am forced to witness the slavish race between the two major Chinese dailies to eulogize their political masters.

The MCA is no doubt bereft of ideology. It is indeed weird that the party that prides itself on standing up for the interests of Chinese Malaysians is at a loss when it comes to ideological issues.

Perhaps this is the reason why the party leadership has nothing substantive to offer other than taking its faithful followers on an LRT train from KL Sentral to the party's headquarters in Jalan Ampang.

What else can it do if not some cheap and facile publicity stunt such as this?