Pak Lah: I won’t criticise successor publicly

PUTRAJAYA: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has declared that he will not criticise his successor publicly, believing that adjustments to the path of making Malaysia a developed nation are bound to happen.
“I just work on the basis of believing that if you do something that is good, if it continues to bring good, then there is no good reason why it should be stopped.”
Abdullah said this when asked if he would get angry if his successor, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, goes against any promises that were made between them before the transition of power took place.
“No, I will not,” he told editors during a final meeting with them at Seri Perdana here Tuesday.
“If you have a policy that takes 20 or 30 years to achieve results, along the way there will be a lot of adjustments. Don’t change the main policy, but just how we get there.”
Abdullah said he did not like to criticise anyone publicly.
“Generally speaking, I would expect an MP to be supportive of the government to which he belongs.
“But if there are certain things that you are not happy about, you can always chat over a cup of tea. I hate to scold people in front of anyone.”
When asked if former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s surprise visit at the Umno general assembly had taken away what was meant to be a grand farewell for Abdullah, he said: “They’ve (Umno members) known me for a long time. When your time is up, it’s time to go. I do not demand too much. No fanfare is necessary.”
On whether any words were exchanged during the embrace on the stage that day, Abdullah said: “It was so rushed. I don’t remember anymore. (It was) not very significant.”
Abdullah said during his six years helming the country’s leadership, his best achievement was the 2004 general election results while his greatest regret was the dismal 2008 general election result.
On whether Abdullah could have handled Dr Mahathir’s attacks against him better, he said: “Maybe. But I just don’t care. How many times did I respond to him? Very rarely.
“The bridge (the so-called crooked bridge to replace the Causeway) was more important to Dr Mahathir than anything else. The rest (of what he said in public) was an elaboration of this.”
When asked why he did not stop the bridge project immediately upon assuming power, Abdullah said: “I did not come in with a pre-conceived idea about stopping it. This is one issue that the Cabinet discussed repeatedly. There was no money, the deficit was up and we want to spend on the bridge?
“People are watching the deficit. It was at 5.3%. If the deficit goes up, do you think we’ll have the money for the stimulus package?”
Abdullah admitted there were missed opportunities because there were many more things he wanted to do, adding that his election manifesto was a plan for the second half of Vision 2020.
“I never had any ambition to be there to declare Malaysia a developed country. I expect continuity.
“However, it’s not how long or short my reign is. It is what you can do in that period. A little bit longer would have been good.”
On whether it would be easy for him to let the position go without feeling sad, Abdullah said life was all about changing roles.
“You go through life doing this. No need to lament the fact when you have to change roles. Accept it.
“If you accept this fact as you progress and you know at every stage there is something you can do, you still lead a useful life.”
Abdullah felt that he would not be affected when stepping down as Prime Minister as there were many things he could do that he had missed out on.
“I don’t think I am going to be affected in anyway. The pomp and all that. Pomp and pageantry do not matter.”

tunku : he told the whole world the bridge was cancelled because singapore wants air space and the sands and now he is saying something else, not enough money. there was enough money at that time.what a liar. i bet he won't criticize najib as if he does that, najib will take a long list of pak lah blunders/wrong doings to the public knowledge which most of them known to all of us.he might have to go to court for some.you think he dare to criticized?he'll be happy to play golf,fishing and gardening than thinking about the nation.can't wait for this friday.