Mahathir to be discharged from hospital in next few days
Malaysia's ex-PM resumes his Chedet blog, urges politicians not to exploit flood crisis
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Malaysia's former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad will be discharged from hospital within the next few days after he was admitted for an unspecified check-up last week.
In a statement released yesterday, the National Heart Institute (IJN) said the team of doctors treating the veteran statesman was satisfied with the results of the investigations done over the past few days.
"Following this, Tun Dr Mahathir is ready for discharge within the next few days," said the institute.
The specialist heart institute did not specify the former two-time prime minister's illness or the nature of the check-up.
Dr Mahathir, 96, yesterday returned to penning down his thoughts on his long-running blog Chedet, his first post since Dec 16 when he was admitted to IJN.
He wrote about global warming and warned of more natural disasters after much of central Malaysia, especially Klang Valley, suffered its worst floods in decades following incessant rain over the weekend.
Dr Mahathir also issued a press statement yesterday urging politicians not to politicise the floods and asked members of his opposition Parti Pejuang Tanah Air to stay humble in delivering aid.
"I am sorry I am not able to join the others in search and rescue missions but I am confident that Pejuang members will be able to carry out their duties responsibly," he said, while thanking those who had wished him well.
Following news of his hospitalisation, supporters and political rivals had prayed for the health of Dr Mahathir, who served a combined total of nearly 24 years as Malaysia's prime minister.
Once the world's oldest prime minister, Dr Mahathir has survived three heart attacks and also undergone quadruple bypass surgery.
He is currently the Member of Parliament for Langkawi and chairman of Pejuang.
Meanwhile, much of Malaysia is still reeling from the floods.
Four days after torrential rain caused severe flooding in eight Malaysian states, at least 17 people have died and more than 66,000 have been displaced.
Selangor, the most populous state, bore the brunt of the flooding.
Water is yet to recede in some of the worst-hit areas, stranding thousands who are waiting to be rescued after spending as many as 48 hours living with the floods.
Dr Mahathir said Malaysians must "prepare" for a change in global temperatures.
"It may get worse. We must expect more natural disasters," he wrote in his post.
In his post, he wrote about global warming and warned of more natural disasters after much of central Malaysia, especially Klang Valley, suffered its worst floods in decades following incessant rain over the weekend. Dr Mahathir also issued a press statement yesterday urging politicians not to politicise the floods and asked members of his opposition Parti Pejuang Tanah Air to stay humble in delivering aid.
