Mahathir bin Mohamad (1925-…) was prime minister of Malaysia from 1981 to 2003 and again from 2018 to 2020. After Mahathir became prime minister the first time, the economy of Malaysia grew rapidly until the mid-1990’s, when an economic crisis struck Southeast Asia. Malaysia’s economic growth then slowed, but Mahathir took steps to put the economy back on track. Mahathir also worked to improve the economic condition of Malays. Malays make up the largest ethnic group in Malaysia, but Chinese Malaysians dominate the country’s commerce and industry. Mahathir, a Malay himself, originally belonged to the country’s largest political party, the United Malays National Organization. In 2016, however, he formed his own opposition party, which later joined the Pakatan Harapan (Alliance of Hope) coalition.
Mahathir was born in Alor Setar on Dec. 20, 1925. He graduated from the King Edward VII College of Medicine (now part of the National University of Singapore) in 1947. He was a government doctor from 1953 until 1957, when he went into private practice. Mahathir won his first seat in Malaysia’s house of representatives in 1964. He lost the seat in 1969 but again won election to the house in 1974. He then held a number of cabinet positions. He became prime minister in 1981 upon the resignation of Hussein bin Onn from that post. Mahathir resigned as prime minister in 2003. He was again elected prime minister in 2018. At 92, he became at that time the world’s oldest elected leader. In early 2020, his coalition’s unity faltered, and Mahathir resigned. The king then asked conservative politician Muhyiddin Yassin to become prime minister. In the general election of 2022, Mahathir lost his parliamentary seat, his first electoral defeat in over 50 years.
See also Putrajaya.
