Dr Mahathir says Daim Zainuddin ‘should be looked up to, but was criticised towards end of his life’
Former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said Tun Daim Zainuddin, who died earlier today, should be praised for his efforts to build the nation.
Instead, Dr Mahathir said the former finance minister was hounded for no reason towards the end of his life.
“Daim should be praised for his contribution to the struggle. But at the end of his life, he was hounded and mocked for no reason, other than revenge. Is this retribution?” Dr Mahathir said in a statement earlier today.
“I lost a friend who fought with me for the nation, the country and the religion. I am devastated. May Allah grant him peace and justice in the afterlife,” he added.
Daim’s death was confirmed by his lawyer, Datuk Gurdial Singh Nijar. He was 86.
Daim was charged in January with not disclosing his assets, which included 25 residences spread across six states, 38 businesses, and seven high-end vehicles, including a Rolls-Royce. He claimed the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission’s (MACC) investigation was driven by political motives.
Last year, he was investigated after the Pandora Papers exposed offshore accounts of world elites and linked Daim to five offshore entities.
Daim, born in Alor Setar, Kedah, was the youngest of 13 siblings. His father was a clerk in the Kedah civil service.
He studied at Seberang Perak Malay School, Sultan Abdul Hamid College, St Xavier’s Institution and Lincoln’s Inn. He holds a Master’s in Urban Planning from the University of California and a PhD from Universiti Malaya.
A renowned businessman, Daim, served as finance minister from 1984 to 1991 and 1998 to 2001.
He was elected Kuala Muda MP in 1982 and later won the Merbok seat. He returned to the finance ministry in 1999 after the Asian financial crisis, and remained in Umno until 2018, when he and other party veterans were sacked for backing Dr Mahathir in opposing then-prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.
Daim and Dr Mahathir then appeared at Pakatan Harapan rallies ahead of the 14th general election, which saw that coalition wrest power from Barisan Nasional and Najib in 2018.
Dr Mahathir was named prime minister, and Daim spearheaded the Council of Eminent Persons tasked with advising the new government for its first 100 days.
His funeral prayers will take place at Masjid Wilayah at 4pm today.
