Press Conference Statement by Parliamentary Opposition Leader, DAP Secretary-General and MP for Kota Melaka, Lim Kit Siang, in Malacca on Wednesday, 29th August 1984 at 11 a.m.
Advise to Sabah Finance Minister, Datuk Mohamad Noor Mansor, not to take after the example of Datuk Harris Salleh or he would never fulfil his dream of becoming Sabah Chief Minister after Harris Salleh
One day after I was arbitrarily denied entry into Sabah via Kota Kinabalu for me to keep the Sandakan date of August 26, the Sabah Finance Minister and Berjaya Secretary-General, Datuk Mohammad Noor Mansor, arranged to be in Malacca to launch a broadside against me.
Datuk Mohamed Noor said that the Sabah Government would never allow me to enter Sabah because I was an ‘undesirable element’ and that ‘it would be stupid for any government to allow such people to come into the State and create trouble’.
Datuk Mohamed Noor had come to Malacca to insult the people of Malacca by accusing them of electing an ‘undesirable element’ to be their Member of Parliamentary. If DAP leaders are as unreasonable as Datuk Harris Salleh and Datuk Haji Mohamed Noor Mansor, I would have asked the people of Malacca to chase the Sabah Finance Minister out of the state.
But we DAP leaders are not like the Sabah Berjaya leaders. In fact, we welcome Datuk Harris Salleh and Datuk Mohamed Noor to come to Peninsular Malaysia and Malacca more often, to see and learn how responsible and civilized political leaders should act and conduct themselves.
Datuk Mohamed Noor did not realise that he was insulting all the other State Governments and the Federal Government for being ‘stupid’ in allowing what he describes as ‘undesirable element’ like me to operate.
Datuk Mohamed Noor said that the Sabah State Government had lifted the ban on Sdr. Lee Lam Thye, DAP Deputy Secretary-General, because ‘he is a responsible member of the Opposition’. Why then did Datuk Harris Salleh ban Sdr. Lee Lam Thye for seven years from 1977 to 1984? Is the Sabah Finance Minister admitting that Datuk Harris Salleh had abused his powers?
Datuk Mohamed Noor has made a special trip to Malacca to make it clear that I am banned from entering Sabah from all entry points, clarifying that Datuk Harris Salleh’s had ‘made a mistake’ in his earlier statement that I could enter Sabah by the back-door via Labuan or Sarawak.
A few days ago, Harris Salleh’s press secretary denied that Harris Salleh had ever said I could enter Sabah from Labuan or Sarawak. Now the Finance Minister of Sabah has come all the way to Malacca to tell me that Harris Salleh had made a mistake and I could not enter Sabah from all entry points. How could the Sabah Chief Minster make such a mistake?
I do not know why Harris Salleh is so frightened of me. The Sabah Finance Minister could have saved Sabah people funds by just phoning me up, instead of coming to Malacca to make this point.
Datuk Mohamed Noor was being ‘cheeky’ when he said that the ban on me from entry into Sabah would remain if I do not ‘behave well’. It is now for the Courts to decide whether who was not behaving well, as I had filed legal action against Datuk Harris Salleh and the Sabah Director of Immigration for banning me from entering Sabah.
I would advise Datuk Mohamed Noor Mansor not to tak after the example of Datuk Harris Salleh if he hopes to become the next Sabah Chief Minister for if he starts saying foolish things even before succeeding Datuk Harris Salleh, he would probably never have such a chance.
DAP praises forthright Utusan Malaysia editorial asserting the public’s right to know on the BMF loans scandal
The DAP commends the Utusan Malaysia for its forthright editorial yesterday asserting the public right’s to know on the $2,500 million Bumiputera Malaysia Finance loans scandal in Hong Kong, and the publication of the BMF inquiry interim report which had been completed and submitted to the Bank Bumiputera.
Regardless of what government decision on the BMF inquiry interim report, the report should be made public immediately, for it is the biggest financial and banking scandal in Malaysian history, and the public have a right to know the fullest details of how it could happen, and the persons responsible for what the Prime Minister had described as a ‘heinous crime’.
I want to make a final call to the Prime Minister, Dr. Mahathir Mohamed, to publicly release the BMF inquiry interim report before August 31 to give meaning and substance to the National Day theme this yar, which is ‘Trust is the Foundation of Success’.
DAP congratulates the MCA Tan Koon Swan faction for being praised by the Malacca State Government for its Bukit China stand
The DAP congratulations the Tan Koon Swan MCA faction for being specially praised by the Malacca State Government, through its monthly organ Suara Melaka, for its Bukit China stand.
This had confirmed the DAP statement all along that the Tan Koon Swan MCA faction had worked closely with the Malacca Chief Minister in formulating the Chief Minister strategy, the preparation of the CM’s July 23 speech in the State Assembly, and in working out a plan after the July 23 speech to undermine and destroy opposition among the people, and in particular the Chinese community, to the Chief Minster’s plan to level and develop 80 per cent of Bukit China into a housing and commercial centre.
The Suara Melaka quoted the Malacca State Government as saying that the development of Bukit China could not be avoided in the interest of Malacca’s development.
This is utter rubbish, for there is still a lot of alternative land in Malacca for development, without destroying the 500-year-old national heritage of all Malaysians, and the symbol of the cultural roots, Chinese contribution to Malaysian nation building, religious freedom and citizenship rights of the Chinese in Malaysia.
If the Chief Minister, Datuk Abdul Rahim Thamby Cik, insists that the levelling and development of Bukit Chinacould not be avoided, then the people must insist that the removal of Abdul Rahim Thamby Cik as Malacca Chief Minister could not be avoided.
With the encouragement being given to the Malacca Chief Minister by the Tan Koon Swan MCA faction and other groups, the people must unite more firmly and respond to the ‘Save Bukit China’ campaign whether for the 200,000 Save Bukit China mass signature campaign, or in the various ‘Walk or Jog to Save Bukit China’ events throughout the country.
The 200,000 Save Bukit China campaign have passed the 60,000-signature mark after it was launched nationwide for the second week, with Malacca in the lead, followed closely by Selangor, with Johore in third place, followed by Perak, Negri Sembilan, Pahang, Penang, Federal Territory.
The Malacca DAP State Save Bukit China Campaign would launch its second weekly ‘Walk or Jog to Save Bukit China’ at Bukit China on National Day on Friday at 5.30 p.m.. The Malacca public are invited to join in the Friday ‘Walk or Jog to Save Bukit China’, wearing the Save Bukit China T-shirts, to show our perserverance and determination to preserve Bukit China.