Dr M dares opposition to reveal whatever files they have on him..
A LESS than impressed Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad yesterday told the opposition he was not afraid of any investigation into his tenure as prime minister.
He said the opposition may open "whatever files they have on me now", adding that he was not afraid of any "skeletons in the closet".
Dr Mahathir said they could investigate him whenever they wished.
"I was taken to court during Pak Lah's (former prime minister Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi) rule. I am not afraid," he said at the launch of the KRU Academy here.
Dr Mahathir said this in reply to DAP adviser Lim Kit Siang's comments that he (Dr Mahathir) was scared that questions over financial scandals during his tenure would resurface if Barisan Nasional (BN) lost the impending general election.
Lim had said that the former prime minister feared that the truth would be out about the multi-billion ringgit scandals during his 22-year premiership.
The opposition politician had cited the 1992 foreign exchange (forex) market scandal as an example, and added that the Central Bank's former deputy governor, Dr Rosli Yaakop had alleged that Dr Mahathir was one of the four individuals responsible for the losses.
Dr Rosli had reportedly said that the others were former finance minister Tun Daim Zainuddin, former Bank Negara governor the late Tan Sri Jaffar Hussein, and current Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop.
It was reported that Lim had said that Bank Negara Malaysia had gambled on the British currency, but when the pound was devalued, and Bank Negara lost RM17 billion, they covered it up and claimed it was only a paper loss of RM9.3 billion.
The Ipoh Timor member of parliament was also reported as saying that should the opposition win the next election, a Royal Commission of Inquiry would be formed to look into the Bank Negara losses and other financial scandals during Dr Mahathir's time.
On another matter, Dr Mahathir said the government should take a second look at the country's higher education system.
He said the country still followed the British education system, which revolved mainly around academic learning instead of practical training.
Dr Mahathir used Germany as an example of a country that includes a lot of practical and skills training in its system, and had managed to become one of the world's main contenders in engineering feats, especially in car manufacturing.
