KUALA LUMPUR: At 99 years old, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad demonstrated his strength and resilience as he withstood hours of intense questioning by a lawyer in the courtroom today (Aug 27).
The former prime minister even refused a brief respite, insisting on continuing his testimony when lawyer Mohamed Shahrul Fazli Kamarulzaman requested a short break from the court.
"We can continue," Dr Mahathir said calmly before High Court judicial commissioner Gan Techiong.
Dr Mahathir's response seemed to impress the court when Gan quipped: "Strong man...99 years old."
The senior statesman also occasionally drew laughter in court for the way he answered questions with his candid and humorous responses.
Dr Mahathir is testifying as a witness in his defamation suit against Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi for the latter's remarks in 2017 alleging Dr Mahathir's real name was Mahathir a/l Iskandar Kutty.
Shahrul, who appeared for the deputy prime minister, bombarded Dr Mahathir with questions, which the latter answered with remarkable calmness.
Shahrul: You have 10 siblings... who is still alive?
Dr Mahathir: I am. I am still alive.
Despite his seemingly nonchalant demeanour, the former Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia chairman occasionally became stern when addressing questions about Zahid's disputed statement.
The plaintiff emphasised that he was not embarrassed about being linked to Indian ancestry and was focused solely on Zahid's remarks referring to him as 'Mahathir a/l Iskandar Kutty'.
Yesterday (Aug 26), Dr Mahathir told the court that his late father, Mohamad bin Iskandar, was from Penang and was a Malay, with ancestors who had roots in the southern Indian state of Kerala.
"When I was prime minister, when I went to Pakistan, they said I was Pakistani; when I went to Bangladesh, they said I was Bangladeshi; when I went to Sri Lanka, they said I was Sri Lankan.
"That is their belief and what they think, but it's not true. My father was born and registered as a Malay from Malaysia.
"I'm not ashamed to say I have Indian heritage, but that does not mean I am not Malay," he said, adding that he was unaware of his grandfather's or great-grandfather's birthline as this was never seriously discussed within his family.
"The suit is not questioning whether Mahathir and Iskandar are Muslim names but rather addressing the accusation of deception related to my real name."
Dr Mahathir also challenged the defendant (Zahid) to present evidence in court, showing his identity card that states his real name is Mahathir a/l Iskandar Kutty.
He issued the challenge while questioning Shahrul's line of inquiry, claiming that the lawyer frequently asked repetitive questions about his ancestry, which he considered irrelevant to the case.
"You keep questioning my ancestry, but the case I filed is about whether Zahid lied or not and whether his statement was defamatory.
"I dare him to prove that I am not Mahathir bin Mohamad, that's the way, not by questioning other matters.
"I did not take (legal) action against others, but only against what he (Zahid) said... prove it.
"Show my IC (MyKad), to me (other questions) are not relevant... I will not answer," he said.
This prompted the judge to intervene and asked the plaintiff to answer the lawyer's questions.
Gan: You are someone with a clear mind. I am sure everyone here is impressed with you. I hope you can cooperate by answering the lawyer's questions.
Dr Mahathir: But it is not relevant.
Gan: With all due respect, Tun, before July 2017, the date this lawsuit was filed, there were articles before that which stated your name as Mahathir a/l Iskandar Kutty.
They (the lawyers) have the right to ask. They are trying to show that the defendant (Zahid) was not the first to raise this issue.
Dr Mahathir: Many articles written are not true. They emphasised that my grandfather's name was Kutty. I have already answered that.
Gan: This is an adversarial system, that is how it works. You are here as a witness, and the defendant's lawyers have the right to ask cross-examination questions.
The process is that after this, there will be a re-examination by your lawyer for clarification.
Dr Mahathir: I will answer, but they keep asking the same questions.
At that point, the lawyer requested the proceedings to be adjourned to Oct 14 as it was almost 4.30pm.
On July 20, 2022, Dr Mahathir filed the suit, naming Zahid, who is also the Umno president, as the defendant. His suit states that the plaintiff genuinely believes that the defendant's reference in the alleged defamatory statement to "that person", "he", and "Mahathir, the son of Iskandar Kutty", explicitly refers to him.
He said his status as a statesman and an influential political figure in the eyes of the world was also skewed as a result.
The statement makes out Dr Mahathir to be a liar, untrustworthy, selfish, unethical while holding public office and unfit to be a leader or public figure, he said.