Mahathir: Democracy to work only if people understand its limitations

MANILA, Philippines - Former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said yesterday that while democracy is the best form of governance for a country, it would only work if the leaders and the people understand its limitations.

Mahathir, conferred as honorary professor of the University of Santo Tomas (UST), delivered a 20-minute lecture at the school’s Medicine Auditorium.

He said there are instances when democratic freedom is being abused.

“When people think only of the freedoms of democracy and know nothing of the implied responsibilities, democracy will not bring the goodness that it promises. Instead it will result only in instability and instability will not permit development to take place and the people to enjoy the benefits of freedom and the rights that democracy promises,” Mahathir said, clarifying that he is not against democracy.

He said Malaysia is a democracy but it sets certain limits because there will be conflict if a government with three different races, cultures and religion would be liberal.

He recalled that even former Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos, who had been called a dictator, came to power because the Filipino people elected him as their leader.

“You know power corrupts and you chose him... it was a democratic procedure and look what happens when you make a wrong choice,” he said.

He said it is often difficult for democratic countries to progress because they would often change elected officials.

“No sooner is a government elected when the losers would hold demonstrations and general strikes accusing the government of malpractice, and the government, in return, would have to deal with these disruptions and neglect its work. But these disruptions could be serious and force the government to resign, thus paving the way for another election and again go through the same cycle,” he said.

Mahathir said that democracy did not give the people a good life compared to when they were under an autocracy.

“Why has democracy not delivered the good life we expected of it? Simply put, it is impossible for the people to rule themselves. There are too many of them and they cannot agree on anything. “Government of the people, by the people and for the people would result in a stalemate, in no government at all, in anarchy,” he added.

To worsen the situation, he said the human rights and freedoms that had been upheld by the government subvert the authority of the elected authority and prevent it from functioning well.

Mahathir admitted that Malaysia does not have a liberal democracy.

“We see democracy principally as providing an easy way to change governments. No revolution, no civil wars, no Arab Spring. Just vote and the government will be brought down (or) re-elected according to the wishes of the people.”

Mahathir, who served as prime minister of Malaysia for about 22 years, pointed out that a country’s progress would also largely depend on its leaders.

He reminded his audience of the truism that “power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.”

Mahathir, credited for opening Malaysia to foreign investment, reforming taxation, reducing trade barriers, and creating a world-class physical infrastructure, said his country’s current total export exceeds $100 billion.

He said they adopted the classic Asian strategy of importing raw material, adding value and exporting the finished product to other countries.

He also credited the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) for enabling its member-countries to learn from each other.

But he cautioned that if a model or strategy would be adopted, it must be configured to suit local conditions.

Asked if the Philippines would be better off having a doctor for president, Mahathir, who is also a medical practitioner, said doctors have certain advantages because of “their methodical approach to problems.”

He said since he is not an economist, he thinks “outside the box” and thus is not bound by economic theories.