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Twitter abuzz with Dr Mahathir’s surprise visit at Bersih 4

The surprise appearance of former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and his wife Tun Dr Siti Hasmah Mohd Ali at the Bersih 4 rally in Kuala Lumpur this evening not only caused a stir on the ground. It has also caused a stir on Twitter as social media users posted all sorts of reaction on the high-profile visit. Well-known Perlis mufti Datuk Dr Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin posted via his Twitter handle @drmazacom that he would have liked to be there when Dr Mahathir dropped by. "Saya tidak tahu Tun M hadir, jika tidak sudah pasti saya ingin menemani Tun M. Beliau negarawan!!!" (I didn't know Tun Mahathir would attend, otherwise I would have surely accompanied him. He's is a statesman!!!) Batu MP Chua Tian Chang, who is better known as Tian Chua, said Dr Mahathir was at Bersih 4 because of the power of the people. "Becuz (because) of kuasa rakyat (people's power), Mahathir walked among the people. If not, he would still be the PM coming with police escorts," the PKR lawmaker wrote. Lawyer Latheefa Koya tweeted: "just because ppl (people) got excited seeing mahathir at bersih does not make them fools lah.. its (it is) amusing no?" Her earlier tweet which read: "for those of you screaming their heads off reminding us how evil Tun M was – calm down lah – his appearance only goes to show the wide impact." When former MIC president Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu posted: "This is how Mahathir stayed as PM for 22 years. He has always been a genius at public relations. #Bersih4 @LatheefaKoya" she replied "dato seri u r correct correct correct!" Another Twitter user Seikat Mahasiswa took a swipe at university students who chose to stay out of the rally. "Tun Mahathir turun Bersih 4 Brsedih la korang Msiswa tak turun sebab takut HEP!!" (Tun Mahathir went to Bersih 4. Despair, university students who did not go out of fear of the HEP (university's student affairs department)) Riazu (@penuhbelakang) had a very short comment about news that Dr Mahathir had showed up at the rally. He tweeted: "habis lah (finished)." Twitter user klubbkidd posted the cheeky comment: "Tun Mahathir turun #Bersih4. #DearNajib be like..." followed by a photo showing Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak praying with his eyes closed. #bersih4.0 jom! (@eastern_metal) wrote: "esok melayu umno kena turun. Bapak keagungan korang pun dah turun! #bersih4" (tomorrow Umno Malays have to attend (the rally). The father of their (party's) greatness had also attended.) Dr Mahathir and Dr Siti Hasmah arrived at Dataran Merdeka at about 7.30pm and were greeted by hundreds of yellow-shirt protestors at the rally. He reportedly told the crowd that he just wanted to see. His presence created a frenzy as many wanted to take pictures with him and shake his hand. The couple only stayed for about five minutes before leaving in a police car. Their eldest daughter Datin Paduka Marina Mahathir is reportedly attending the Bersih 4 rally in London. Dr Mahathir has been Najib's biggest critic in the past months over the controversies surrounding the latter's administration. He had told Najib to resign months ago, a demand that Bersih 4 is also making, apart from its demands for reforms in the election system, governance, the economy, parliamentary democracy and the freedom to protest. – August 29, 2015.