It is clear from the recent imbroglio over the appointment of Abdul Gani Patail as attorney general that Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad is above both King and Constitution.

There would be no leader of any genuinely democratic country that can get away with a deed that contravenes the country's highest legal document, but Mahathir can rest assured that his 'supreme will' will be unchallenged once the opposition storm blows over.

The Parliament is no more than the rubber stamp that it has always been. The judiciary, despite signs of improvement, appears to be still firmly beneath the executive's thumb. The mainstream media remains the leashed and fawning dog, well trained by Mahathir.

The premier's puppets head all the important posts, ranging from Speaker in Parliament to heads of the election commission, police, AG's office and ACA.

Puppets, by definition, have no independent will but jerk to their master's whim.

The above description is hardly different from a dictatorship. Malaysia is, in fact, a dictatorship behind a democratic mask.