But it needs to be clarified that this day being associated with misfortune is strictly a Western concept.
In so far as the Malay Muslims are concerned, Friday is the lead day of the week. Apart from that, there is no such thing as any number being unlucky.
It turned out that today’s Friday the 13th is propitious for the former twice-prime minister, as attempts by his “enemies” to sully his reputation and past contributions to the nation had not only failed but also backfired.
Yesterday’s tabling of the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) over the withdrawal of the application to review and interpret the International Court of Justice’s (ICJ) 2008 decision over Pulau Batu Puteh (Pedra Branca), Batuan Tengah (Middle Rocks) and Tubir Selatan (South Ledge) at the Parliament was not conclusive.
The Parliament did not end up supporting the recommendations of the RCI which included that a criminal probe be preferred on Dr Mahathir.
Despite vigorous efforts by a Minister in the present Cabinet to justify the reports in the RCI, counterarguments put forth by other MPs, including some backbenchers, only revealed their disbelief that such an initiative against Dr Mahathir was even suggested.
One backbencher even reminded present members of the Government of Dr Mahathir’s contributions, adding that even their occupation of Putrajaya, the administrative capital, was the handiwork of Dr Mahathir.
Others took offence over attempts to accuse Dr Mahathir of treachery over the Pulau Batu Puteh issue, with one young MP describing Dr Mahathir as an ultranationalist.
The credibility and conduct of the RCI were also called into doubt at how it had carried out the inquiry in secrecy and that Dr Mahathir was not allowed to defend or tell his side of the story, nor allowed to question or rebut the allegations made by witnesses.
Earlier yesterday, there were attempts by former members of Dr Mahathir’s cabinet, namely Dr Wan Azizah Ismail (then deputy PM), Mohamad Sabu (then Defence Minister) and Anthony Loke (then and current Transport Minister) to throw Dr Mahathir under the bus.
They issued a statement claiming that at their very first Cabinet meeting, Dr Mahathir had only informed them of his decision to withdraw the application to the ICJ and that there was no debate nor discussion at all.
Simply put, in summation, these Cabinet members of Dr Mahathir had the decision on the application was already a fait accompli and Dr Mahathir’s presentation of it to the case was merely to inform them, nothing more and nothing less.
In distancing themselves, the trio was unhappy that Dr Mahathir had dragged them into the controversy.
They may have thought the statement would have absolved them of any responsibility only for Dr Mahathir to point out that surely, being informed of something is not an excuse not to question or debate on the issue during a Cabinet meeting.
Dr Mahathir said if they had chosen to be silent when informed of something during a Cabinet meeting, shouldn’t that be taken as them agreeable, and not opposed to what they had been informed of?
The former PM further said being the head of Government, it was not a problem for him to accept responsibility for the issue.
The question is, he added, were they prepared to accept collective responsibility when they joined the Cabinet.
If they refused, wouldn’t that be tantamount to shirking the responsibility entrusted to them?
Dr Mahathir concluded that as far as he remembered, all the Cabinet members, including the trio, had agreed with the information/opinion on the issue, which he provided in detail, and this was minuted.
In his final salvo, Dr Mahathir said he was extremely surprised that since 2018 (when the Cabinet meeting on the issue was held), they had been silent, and when he informed the truth, they decided to avoid sharing responsibility.
A couple of hours after Dr Mahathir issued the statement, a 2018 video clip was shared on several social media platforms depicting Dr Mahathir meeting the press to explain the decision to withdraw the application to the ICJ.
On his right, standing upright was Wan Azizah, obviously in a show of support for Dr Mahathir, the PM and that she was indeed the right-hand person.
It only adds to suspicions that the move to pin the blame on Dr Mahathir over the withdrawal of the application is an orchestration by those who harboured ill feelings towards Dr Mahathir, and these stemmed from personal bitterness and had nothing to do with the national interest.
Unfortunately, their vendetta and motive are showing. In their haste, they seem to wear their pettiness on their sleeves and their efforts to paint Dr Mahathir as a traitor had only strengthened his stature as a patriot.
This is neither by chance nor design. It is a historical legacy as Dr Mahathir is probably the only living Malaysian who fought against the Malayan Union and subsequently for Malaysian independence.
The first ensured that the Malay Rulers remained royal, while the other birthed a sovereign nation.
Those out to assassinate his character were not even born and if they had been, it would be the period during the struggle for independence. Even then, they would have barely got out of their diapers.
Whether they like it or not, they are today beneficiaries of the struggles of independence fighters like Dr Mahathir and other nationalists.
Indeed, Dr Mahathir was only one of the many, yet he was one of them.
None of his detractors can claim the same.
- Shamsul Akmar is an editor at The Malaysian Reserve.