He held office from to and later from to for a cumulative total of 24 years, making him the country's longest-serving prime minister. Before becoming premier, he served as deputy prime minister and in other cabinet positions. His political career has spanned more than 75 years, from joining protests opposing citizenship policies for non-Malays in the Malayan Union in the s to forming the Gerakan Tanah Air coalition in He was granted the soubriquet "Father of Modernisation" " Bapa Pemodenan " for his pivotal role in transforming the country's economy and infrastructure.
Born and raised in Alor Setar , Kedah, Mahathir excelled at school and became a physician. In , he released the book The Malay Dilemma. He became Deputy Prime Minister in before being sworn in as prime minister in During Mahathir's first tenure, Malaysia underwent modernization and economic growth , and his government initiated widespread industry privatisation and a series of bold infrastructure projects.
Mahathir was a dominant political figure, winning five consecutive general elections and fending off several rivals for UMNO's leadership. He centralised power through undermining judicial independence and supporting a constitutional amendment to remove legal immunity for royalty.
He continued pro- bumiputera policies, and oversaw Malaysia's relatively fast recovery from the Asian financial crisis. In , he detained various activists and religious figures under Operation Lalang , and in had his deputy Anwar Ibrahim arrested. As prime minister, he was an advocate of Asian values and development models, and was particularly prominent across the Muslim world.
In , Mahathir announced his intention to resign as Prime Minister, [ 5 ] [ 6 ] officially stepping down in after 22 years in office, [ 7 ] but remained politically influential and was critical of his successors. He also secured the pardon and release of Anwar Ibrahim. Mahathir's political views have shifted during his life, and are shaped by his Malay nationalism and Islamic religious beliefs. Mahathir was born at his parents' home in a poor neighbourhood at Lorong Kilang Ais, Alor Setar , in the capital of the Malay sultanate of Kedah under a British protectorate , on 10 July Wan Tempawan had only distant relations to members of Kedah's royalty.
