Back in 2008, Najib Razak and Muhyiddin Yassin were only too happy and willing to help Mahathir Mohamad bring down the then prime minister Abdullah Badawi. Mahathir had made many attempts but could not hammer it through because Badawi had been smart enough to get a mandate of his own from the people, something that his successor Najib has failed to do and which is costing him now.
In 2004, Badawi who was Mahathir's anointed successor took the BN to a landlisde victory, a record 95 per cent rout that immediately sparked a jealous reaction from his former boss that too huge a dominance in Parliament was not good for the country. But Mahathir needn't have worried because in 2008, Badawi crashed. He took the BN to its worst-ever electoral performance, even losing the coalition's long-held two-thirds majority in Parliament.
At 86, Mahathir is still calling the shots in Umno
