Dr Mahathir’s one-man show

ONCE more, Malaysia's prime minister has taken the reins at the finance ministry. In September 1998, Mahathir Mohamad snatched them away from his then deputy prime minister, Anwar Ibrahim, who is now in prison, and slapped capital controls in place to cope with regional turmoil. He eventually handed the job to Daim Zainuddin, a wealthy power-broker and long-time ally who had helped to devise the controls as part of a wider recovery plan. Malaysia's economy outpaced most of its neighbours in 1999 and 2000, defying predictions. Now the economy is back in trouble. And on June 5th Dr Mahathir announced that he would, temporarily, take over the finance job again, following Mr Daim's departure.