Dr M: Bailing out tycoons during financial crisis was to minimise retrenchment, help country's economy

PETALING JAYA: Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad has defended his method of handling the Asian financial crisis in the late 1990s during his first tenure as Prime Minister.

In his blog on Tuesday (Oct 29), the Pakatan Harapan chairman admitted to bailing out tycoons during the crisis as it was one of the best ways to minimise retrenchment and kept the country from falling even deeper into economic depression.