In an interview with the South China Morning Post (SCMP), he said he “can’t always be popular”.
“One day, I will become unpopular because when you are in the government, you have to do unpopular things. So that is not something permanent.
“But at the moment, of course, by comparison with my period and Najib’s period, they (the people) prefer the life that they led during my time,” he told the Hong Kong daily, referring to former prime minister Najib Razak who was ousted in the May 9 election.
This is Mahathir’s second stint as prime minister. He previously led the country from 1981 to 2003, coming out of retirement to join the opposition in toppling Najib in the 14th general election.
He had pledged during the election campaign to step aside for PKR leader Anwar Ibrahim, who was serving a five-year jail term for sodomy at the time.
Several days after winning the election, he said he may stay on as prime minister for “one or two years”.
At the Nikkei conference in Tokyo last week, he said he was willing to serve as prime minister for as long as the people wanted him to.
“But of course, I don’t know how long I myself will last,” he said, adding that he would be 95 in two years’ time.
“It will be a record if I reach 95 and am still prime minister.”
When asked where he got his energy, Mahathir told SCMP he believed it was from “simple things like not putting on weight, not eating too much, proper sleep, a little bit of exercise”.
Asked how much sleep he got each night, he said: “Enough. About six hours.”
He reiterated that it was up to the people how long he remained as prime minister.
When asked if he would want to stay on longer than two years, he said: “If there is some work I can still do, if I am still healthy, I can think and talk.”