By Parliamentary Opposition Leader, DAP Secretary-General and MP for Kota Melaka, Lim Kit Siang, in Petaling Jaya on Wednesday, Nov 6, 1985:
DAP backs ex-Premier Hussein Onn’s cal to Federal Government to take immediate steps to help resolve the Sabah crisis.
The DAP fully back the call by former Prime Minister, Tun Hussein Onn, to the Federal Government to take immediate steps to help resolve the political crisis in Sabah.
Tun Hussein Onn is perfectly right when he said that the Federal Government cannot avoid its responsibility as the whole nation is concerned over the political situation in the State.
This does not mean that the Federal Government should invoke Article 150 of the Constitution to proclaim a state of emergency in Sabah and dismiss the PBS Government, for instead of resolving the Sabah poli8tical crisis, such a step would take the crisis to a new height and dimension.
What the Federal Government should do is to restrain both the Parti Berjaya and USNO from their destructive and undemocratic campaign to try to de-stabilise and topple the PBS Government of Datuk Joseph Pairin Kitingan.
What is Anwar’s stand on the Sabah political crisis?
I am very surprised by the stand taken by the UMNO Youth Leader, Anwar Ibrahim, on the Sabah political and constitutional crisis which had been artificially created by USNO and Berjaya.
Anwar, in his ABIM days, had given the Malaysian public the impression that he would take an uncompromising stand against all forms of undemocratic, unjust and unfair practices, whether in the political arena or other spheres of life.
But on the artificial Sabah political and constitutional crisis, Anwar had no criticism against the disruptive and destructive campaign of those who want to de-stabilise a duly elected government of the people.
Instead, from Anwar’s comments on the Sabah crisis, it would appear that he is also condoning such undemocratic, destructive and disruptive activities.
Who sent the undated pre-signed resignation letters to Sabah Speaker
It has been reported that the three former PBS Assemblymen had lodged a police report against the Sabah Assembly Speaker, Tan Sri Sunoh Mrso, for conspiring with others to remove them from the Assembly.
Just as the High Court had refused to interfere with the Sabah Speaker’s discharge of his duties (however wrong or improper), I am doubtful that the three former PBS Assemblymen would be able to get much help from the Police.
It is however a very relevant question as to who was responsible for sending the undated pre-signed resignation letters to the Sabah Speaker.
Two of the three former PBS Assemblymen affected were formerly Berjaya candidates, who had given to the party the undated pre-signed resignation letters.
It is interesting that on last Friday’s papers, i.e Nov. 1, 1986 the same day the so-called `resignation` of the three PBS Assemblymen were reported, the Berjaya President, Datuk Haji Mohammed Noor Mansoor, was quoted in a Bernama report as saying that Berjaya had not decided on the course of action to be taken against its Assemblymen who had defected to PBS. Datuk Haji Mohamed Noor Mansooor said that any decision would be taken in consultation with the Barisan Nasional leadership. But according to Tan Sri Sunoh, he submitted the `resignation` letters to the Elections Commission on 30th Oct. 1985. Did he get the resignation letters on 28th Oct. or 29th Oct.?
Assuming that Datuk Haji Mohamed Noor Mansoor had been correctly reported, and had spoken truthfully, this means that pre-signed resignation letters of Lau Pui Keong (Karamunting) and Baharum Datuk Titingan (Balung) had not been sent in by Parti Berjaya to the Sabah Speaker.
The next question to ask is how did the Sabah Speaker get the pre-signed resignation letters, or did he have them in his possession all the time? The Sabah Assembly Speaker, Tan Sri Sunoh Marso, owe the people of Sabah and Malaysia a full explanation as to how he came to get the pre-signed letters of resignation, and how these letters escaped the custody of Berjaya, to which they rightly belonged.
It is from this aspect that the Police should launch a full-scale inquiry, as to how the pre-signed letters of resignation escape Berjaya’s custody and get into the Sabah Speaker’s hands. Has the former Berjaya President and Sabah Chief Minister, Datuk Harris Salleh, any role in this as well in the latest developments in the Sabah political crisis?
Tan Koon Swan MCA faction performing a second Bukit China on the primary school integration programme
The MCA Deputy Education Minister, Datuk Dr. Ling Liong Sik, had said more than once in Parliament in answer to questions on the integrated primary school programme that there were people with ulterior motives who intentionally opposed the integration programme for primary schools to be launched by the Ministry of Education early next year.
I call on Datuk Dr Ling to name these `people with ulterior motive` who are opposing the primary school integration programme. Is it Tung/Chiau Chung, the 27 Chinese organisations who adopted the Declaration which included the call for the cancellation of the primary school integration programme last month, or is it his own MCA President, Datuk Dr. Neo Yee Pan whose faction has come out against the integrated primary school project. Or is Datuk Dr. Ling taling about the DAP?
In any event, Datuk Dr. Ling and his Tan Koon Swan MCA faction should realise that they are going against the mainstream of Chinese Community in utterly disregarding its fears about the future of Chinese primary schools.
The Tan Koon Swan MCA faction is doing a second Bukit China, where for its own political interest to carry favour with the UMNO leadership, it was prepared to go against the Chinest community and ignore the rights, status and future of the Malaysian Chinese.
I would advise the Tan Koon Swan MCA faction that it is no use at all to win the MCA leadership if their price is to repeatedly do a Bukit China, to be a party to the relentless erosion of the basic political, economic, education, cultural and religious rights of the Malaysian Chinese.
I would call on the Education Minister, Datuk Abdullah Badawi, in his meeting with Tung/Chiau Chung representatives tomorrow, to respect the wishes of the Chinese community and cancel the primary school integration programme, and to assure the Chinese society that the government would have no intention whatsoever to change the character of Chinese primary schools, announce the Cabinet’s intention to repeal Clause 21(2) of the 1961 Education Act.