Malaysian leader is now world's oldest prime minister
At the age of 92, Mahathir Mohamad has been re-elected as the country's Prime Minister after previously leading the country for 23 years.
How old is too old to be in a position of power?
The country of Malaysia is making waves around the world after it was announced that 92-year-old Mahathir Mohamad was elected to be the Prime Minister of the country.
Mohamad has been credited with turning Malaysia into a significant trading and economic force in Southeast Asia. He left politics and retired back in 2003 after being Prime Minister for 22 years from 1981 until 2013.
This time around he said that he'd only remain in office for one or two years, then hand over to Anwar Ibrahim, an opposition party leader.
Watch a snippet of his exclusive interview with the Wall Street Journal below:
Guinness World Book of Records reported that Mohamad is now the world's oldest current Prime Minister, bagging the title at the age of 92. He was born on 20 December 1925.
Well, it seems there’s a lot of mixed feelings about his return to government, not because of his political stance, but because he’s so old. The question: is age just a number when it comes to politics?
Let's not forget that our former President Jacob Zuma was 75 when he left office, and Robert Mugabe was even older at 93-years-old.
There's a common phrase that goes 'with age comes wisdom'. Psychological Science conducted experiments which shows that it seems individuals look to younger leaders to be innovative in their thinking as opposed to grey-hair people in power. Older leaders are seen to be stable and conventional when it comes to decision-making, however.
I don't get involved too much in politics, but I ensure that I exercise my right to vote when it's required of me. After all, we all have the responsibility to ensure that the right person is in power to lead our country.
When it comes to you choosing a leader, are you more likely to trust someone who is under or over the age of 50?