Tun Dr Mahathir Makes an Impact at Bookest@ Malaysia 2011

The draw of crowd to the BookFest @ Malaysia has been overwhelming even t hough I expect Kuala Lumpur City should not be bustling with heavy traffic Jam like during Normal work days , especially when this week is the golden h olidays week , where most people would have gone back to their home town to celebrate the Ramadan Holidays

Maybe truly Bookfest@ Malaysia could be organising a Mega sales that could be one of its kind bustling with Special deals from Books to stationary , as I noticed the halls were crowded Among the bustle and hustle , I noticed most visitors moving towards the main stage where it is organised like a speaker s corner for the Author and Publisher to talk about their books

As I moved towards the stage , the PA system announced Lets Welcome Tun Dr Mahathir , Well I can understand why the crowd now as our truly patriotic Former Prime Minister of Malaysia has always been a draw of crowds at any occasion where he has been invited and this round he is here at the Bookfest for the launch of the Chinese edition of his memoirs A Doctor in the House (yi sheng dang jia ) with loud applause from the crowd While maintaining a consistent smile, Tun Dr Mahatir took to the stage, he is appearing at the bookfest as an accomplished VIP author to promote his Books and took to his fan s questions fielded by members of the public in a question -and-answer session. I enjoyed 22 years of working and until now I still work from morning to 6pm, such as meeting people, writing and reading, he told a crowd at the BookFest@Malaysia 2011. At this Q & A , some political question were also fielded and DR Mahat hir who always has

a flair with quotes answered to the floor when a person ask about the r ecent Bersih Demonstration; He quoted ; "No one should be entitled to everything that he thinks he is entitled to, because everyone must make some sacrifice." Responding to another question from the floor , who asked about how he managed to turn around Malaysia's economy during the 1997 -1998 financial crisis, Dr Mahathir said: If you keep your money under your pillow, the economy will never grow the reply was Jovial and a pleasant answer to the crowd who responded with applause. On another question from a person who ask how he managed his time for his age , well he answered ; People who retire, please don't just go to sleep and stay at home. Do something because if you are interested in doing things, you will live longer, D r Mahathir said to laughter and applause from the crowd. I like this remark as he reminded us , to keep upgrading oneself and also keep our mind focused to acquire more knowledge with now easy access to the internet .

Dr Mahathir is the former statesman who has brought in the MSC to this country , and I believe he bring s forth and open an opportunity for everybody to be able to appreciate the New Digital Media Era and how he has contributed to reduce the digi tal divide between the Old and the Young . http://seoweathsblog.blogspot.com