KUALA LUMPUR: Former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad has likened the sale of a 49.9% stake in Proton Holdings Bhd to a Chinese company to “losing a child”.
“They say Proton is my brainchild. Now, the child of my brain has been sold,” said Dr Mahathir, who is considered the father of Proton.
“I am a sissy. I cry even if Malaysians are dry-eyed. My child is lost. And soon my country,” he wrote in a blog post on chedet.cc yesterday.
According to Dr Mahathir, the sale of the stake to China’s Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co Ltd meant that Proton can no longer be the national car of Malaysia.
“I am sure Proton will do well. It will be a commercial success ... sold all over the world. The Proton name will be everywhere.
“But I cannot be proud of its success. I cannot be proud of the success of something that does not belong to me or my country. Maybe other Malaysians will, but not me,” he said.
Dr Mahathir, who is known for his sharp wit, displayed somewhat a sombre tone in his post, which he entitled “Proton”.
“I will die soon. I am already beyond [the] average age. And as I slip into my final years, or months or days, I will watch as our beloved country is sold to foreigners to settle the trillion ringgit that we owe.
“We will have to sell more and more of our country. What are our assets? Our land, of course! That was what we did in the past. We sold chunks of our country. We lost the land we sold. That is what we are doing now. And that will be what we will have to do — or forfeit our country, like we forfeit Proton,” he said.
more at Dr M likens Proton stake sale to ‘losing a child’
“They say Proton is my brainchild. Now, the child of my brain has been sold,” said Dr Mahathir, who is considered the father of Proton.
“I am a sissy. I cry even if Malaysians are dry-eyed. My child is lost. And soon my country,” he wrote in a blog post on chedet.cc yesterday.
According to Dr Mahathir, the sale of the stake to China’s Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co Ltd meant that Proton can no longer be the national car of Malaysia.
“I am sure Proton will do well. It will be a commercial success ... sold all over the world. The Proton name will be everywhere.
“But I cannot be proud of its success. I cannot be proud of the success of something that does not belong to me or my country. Maybe other Malaysians will, but not me,” he said.
Dr Mahathir, who is known for his sharp wit, displayed somewhat a sombre tone in his post, which he entitled “Proton”.
“I will die soon. I am already beyond [the] average age. And as I slip into my final years, or months or days, I will watch as our beloved country is sold to foreigners to settle the trillion ringgit that we owe.
“We will have to sell more and more of our country. What are our assets? Our land, of course! That was what we did in the past. We sold chunks of our country. We lost the land we sold. That is what we are doing now. And that will be what we will have to do — or forfeit our country, like we forfeit Proton,” he said.
more at Dr M likens Proton stake sale to ‘losing a child’
