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Dr Mahathir’s presence at Bersih rally catches organisers by surprise, crowd overjoyed

Although the presence of Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad‎ at the Bersih 4 rally caught its organisers by surprise, the thousands gathered around Dataran Merdeka tonight were overjoyed at the presence of Malaysia's longest-serving prime minister. Dr Mahathir, who only hours ago informed Umno members in Johor that he was thinking of attending the rally, was mobbed by thousands of Malaysians, screaming "Bersih, Bersih" at the top of their lungs. Although it was only a brisk visit, during which he waved and shook hands with several participants, the crowd continued to cheer the former prime minister, who has become one of the government's strongest critic. He even said a few words, "Teruskan, teruskan", urging those gathered for the Bersih 4 rally to continue their fight in calling for a clean government. As he got into his car and drove away, the crowd erupted into a bigger cheer, indicating a moral victory against the ruling government. Meanwhile, Bersih 2.0 chairperson Maria Chin Abdullah said she did not expect Dr Mahathir to attend the rally, albeit briefly, ‎although he had said he was thinking about it. "I didn't expect it. He was thinking, yes. He must have thought very fast," she said. Bersih steering committee member New Sin Yew said everyone was welcomed to the Bersih 4 rally and will not discriminate against anyone against attending. "It's a public place. We don't discriminate against anyone. We welcome everyone," he added. Meanwhile, a couple in their 50s who were at the rally told The Malaysian Insider that it was great to see Dr Mahathir at the rally, but said that the retired statesman had "a mission on his mind". "He has a mission on his mind. His mission is to bring down (Prime Minister Datuk Seri) Najib (Razak). Not necessarily ‎to bring down a corrupt government," they said. "But we must be clever to use him (Dr Mahathir) to do exactly that." The couple, who came with their son, also said they decided to attend because of the last-minute government ban on Bersih 4 ‎paraphernalia yesterday. "I want to tell the government that if they ban these things, more people will come‎," they added. – August 29, 2015.