Kishore Mahbubani, who is also a professor of public policy at the National University of Singapore, said in an interview with Bloomberg that he foresees a degree of instability ahead, with parties jostling for positions.
He said no one had expected the outcome of the May 9 general election, and that both Mahathir and Anwar would have to adjust to working together again.
“If Anwar is patient, he will know eventually that he will be prime minister. It is not in his interest to rock the boat when the tide is in his favour.
“The reasons for working together are stronger than for fighting one another,” he added.
Kishore said if he were in Anwar’s shoes, he would be grateful to Mahathir as he could still be in jail if Mahathir had not won.
On Chinese investments and relations with Singapore, Kishore said he expected good relations to continue although there might be some renegotiations on specific projects.
He said he expected Mahathir to be more critical of the US than China, and that Beijing would be pragmatic in adjusting to the new government in Malaysia.
“I hope Malaysia will continue the cooperative projects initiated by former prime minister Najib Razak like the High Speed Rail (HSR) project, which is badly needed,” he said, adding that the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore air route is the busiest in the world.
“If Mahathir and Anwar are committed to giving Malaysia’s economy a big boost, then continuing cooperation with Singapore would be in Malaysia’s interest,” he told Bloomberg.
Earlier today, Mahathir said he might stay on as prime minister for “one or two years”, after earlier agreeing to step aside for Anwar.
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