The relationship between Mahathir and the Malaysian royalty can be described as tumultuous. Once again, the former statesman has launched another attack on the Johor royal family for allegedly failing to help the Malays. However, given his turbulent history with the royals, can we trust his accusations? Mahathir has constantly portrayed himself as a stabilizing force in Malaysian politics, with grand statements such as only he can take charge and lead the Malays into the future. But it is crystal clear today that Mahathir is responsible for the political instability we see today. Pursuing his vision of Malaysia, he turned UMNO and the Barisan Nasional into a powerful patronage machine. He crippled every institution supposed to check and balance an overreaching executive to push through his “reforms.” He often sacrificed integrity to secure loyalty and bypassed those not supporting him. What about his Bumi first policy? The effects of Mahathir’s policies on his “favoured” bumiputras hav