Philippines congratulates Mahathir, sees ‘enhanced’ ties with Malaysia

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines on Friday, May 11, congratulated Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad on his election victory, and looked forward to “enhanced” ties with Malaysia under his rule.

Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said the election of Mahathir bodes well for  continued strong bilateral ties between the Philippines and Malaysia.

“We wish to congratulate Mahathir Mohamad on his return as Prime Minister of Malaysia. Prime Minister Mahathir is an old friend of the Philippines and his fresh mandate augurs well for the deep relations between the Philippines and Malaysia,” Roque said.

The Palace spokesman also cited Malaysia’s role as a “dependable” neighbor, as shown by its facilitation of the peace negotiations between the Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), which was done under the leadership of Mahathir’s predecessor, Najib Razak.

“Malaysia, as we all know, is a brother nation and dependable partner of the Philippines for having played a constructive role towards the attainment of peace and stability in Mindanao,” Roque said.

“We are thus confident that the strong partnership between our countries would continue to be enhanced in the years to come,” he added. 

The 92-year-old Mahathir took his oath as Prime Minister Thursday night, May 10, making him in the world’s oldest elected leader.

Mahathir previously held office for 22 years, from 1981 to 2003, making him the longest serving prime minister of Malaysia.

Ties between the Philippines and Malaysia went through a rough patch during the administration of President Joseph Estrada, who personally protested Mahathir’s actions towards his “good friend” former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim in 1998.

The jailed opposition leader teamed up with Mahathir  during the recent polls to oust the government of Najib Razak.

Mahathir was in Manila in October 2017 for the ASEAN Leaders’ Forum. At the time, he admitted that he was “working very hard to get rid” of Najib Razak, whom he called a dictator. 

During his Manila visit, he was also invited as the keynote speaker at the annual conference of the Financial Executives of the Philippines (Finex).

During a press conference on the sidelines of the Finex conference where he was asked about the Duterte administration’s bloody campaign against illegal drugs, Mahathir stressed the need for rule of law to prevail in running after suspects as is the case, he said, in his country. (READ: Mahathir stresses need for rule of law amid EJKs in PH) – Rappler.com