Dr Mahathir Might Start Another Car Company If Pakatan Harapan Wins The Next GE
The former prime minister also lamented on the sale of Proton to Chinese automobile manufacturer Geely.
By John Lim — 25 Aug 2017, 04:11 PM
Tun Dr Mahathir has hinted he might start a new automobile project if Pakatan Harapan were to win in the next general election
The former prime minister, who is currently the chairman of the opposition coalition, said he might start a new company that's similar to Proton if his party succeeds in capturing Putrajaya in the upcoming general election.
"I would say, if I cannot get Proton, I have some idea about starting another automotive, remembering of course, that the idea of building a national car is not just for the sake of having a national car, but as a catalyst for growing our engineering know-how and capability,” he said during a forum about China’s investments in Malaysia, as quoted by Malaysiakini.
Mahathir also lamented on the sale of the national car brand, which he set up back in 1983
"Proton cars have all the features of cars coming in from other countries. The only thing it doesn’t have is that it doesn’t conform to Euro 5 or Euro 6 (standards), which we could have if we are prepared to pay the price,” he told The Star Online.
In May, DRB-Hicom sold a 49.9% stake in wholly-owned Proton Holdings Bhd to Geely. Additionally, Geely also received 51% of stake in Lotus.
PKR vice-president Nurul Izzah Anwar, who was also present at the forum, said a plan of this magnitude has to be carefully examined first
Meanwhile, communications and multimedia minister Salleh Said Keruak advised Mahathir to put the idea to rest, citing reasons that the competition is stiff in the automobile industry
"We need to be realistic when it comes to the automative industry. The competition is really stiff. Proton’s tie-up with a foreign company will guarantee it can compete and withstand the coming challenges," he said as quoted by FMT.