Winning over the young and old Dr Mahathir wooed investors and gained a host of admirers among the young with his curiosity for new technology during a short trip to Beijing.

HE came, he heard, he saw and now he was on an official trip to the He also revealed that between to work harder?” Tun Dr has a Middle Kingdom, but the senti­ 2013 and 2017, a total of 6,362 At the centre of the world’s big­ clearer picture of what the Belt and ments on the ground now, particu­ Malaysian companies were set up gest telecommunications equip­ Road Initiative (BRI) is all about. larly among the business circle, They are confident, in . ment maker, Dr Mahathir and Ren "At first, we were worried that have changed drastically. especially after we Tan, who talked about peo- also discussed ways to leverage on BRI was a plan by China to domi­ At a dialogue session, Chinese ple-to-people ties at a side event of information and communications nate Asean because one part of the entrepreneurs appeared to be more restarted the East the forum, said he urged China to technology (ICT) to better facilitate trade route involved the Straits of open, raising many questions Coast Rail Link and provide more scholarships for ’s economic development. and the South China Sea. and seeking more business infor­ Malaysian students to pursue their Another post about Dr Mahathir’s "But in this forum (the Second mation. Bandar Malaysia studies at Chinese universities. visit to China reads: "He under­ Belt and Road Forum for Interna­ Their feedback was also positive, projects. They told To mark the 45th anniversary of stands that the railway he builds tional Cooperation), it is more of all with many expressing how their Malaysia-China relations, he said a today will benefit Malaysia in the participating countries working enterprises had successfully expan­ me they are glad series of programmes had been future. together to develop our nations ded in Malaysia and planning to that all the problems lined up for the celebration. "I believe he will come to China respectively,” said the Prime Minis­ pour in more capital. The events include the Malaysia- again and work with us to construct ter. During Dr Mahathir’s previous have been resolved China Entrepreneurs Forum, more rail roads and infrastructure All countries, regardless of their trip last August, Chinese investors - trade-related activities, photo exhi­ because he loves his country and size and wealth, were given equal although not the same batch of Tan Kok Wai bition and others. hopes to see it becoming strong and standing to discuss policies and people - were more reserved, wor­ Chinese netizens were excited to prosperous.” plans for their own nations. rying that the change of govern­ see Dr Mahathir taking the effort to International Monetary Fund So, Dr Mahathir was convinced ment would affect their businesses learn about new technology and managing director Christine Lagarde that the initiative would benefit all and raising concerns on the uncer­ “And now they are confident, considered the world’s oldest leader posted a short clip of her chatting participating nations. tain relationship between Malaysia especially after we restarted the as a role model to motivate them­ with Dr Mahathir on her Weibo. The BRI, consisting of the Silk and China. East Coast Rail Link and Bandar selves to continue learning. She wrote in Chinese: "Very Road Economic Belt and Maritime The Prime Minister’s special Malaysia projects. Most of the posts on Weibo were happy to have met Prime Minister Silk Road, is a China-led investment envoy to China, Tan Kok Wai, "They told me they are glad that about his visit to the research cen­ Mahathir at the Belt and Road and infrastructure development noticed the difference, too. all the problems have been tre of Huawei in Beijing, where he Forum 2019. project spanning more than 120 "I went through a tough time resolved,'' added Tan, who was was greeted by its founder Ren "I am looking forward to meeting countries. when I first came to China. appointed to this position in August Zhengfei on April 25. him again in Malaysia in June.” Dr Mahathir, who led a delega­ “The Chinese asked me why we last year. A user wrote: "A 75-year-old "I consider this trip a success,” Dr tion of six ministers and a mentri cancelled projects with Chinese He said China also pledged their (referring to Ren) and a 94-year-old Mahathir told Malaysian media besar, was in Beijing from April 24 contractors, whether their invest­ support for Malaysia to host the get together to discuss 5G technolo­ when concluding his five-day visit to 28. ments were secured in Malaysia Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation gy. Even the seniors are learning to China and less than an hour It was just eight months ago when and many others. (Apec) leaders’ summit next year. hard, what excuse do we have not before he flew home on April 28.