by Parliamentary Opposition Leader, DAP Secretary-General and MP for Kota Melaka, Lim Kit Siang, in PJ on Sunday, 9.3.1986:
Samy Vellu’s statement confirmed that most Ministers have not read the BMF Final Report when they chopped and changed their Cabinet decision about the publication and non-tabling of the Report
Works Minister, Datuk Samy Vellu, said yesterday that most Cabinet Ministers were given a copy of final report on the BMF loans scandal two days ago. This has confirmed my suspicion all along that most of the Cabinet Ministers, including all MCA, Gerakan, MIC and most UMNO Ministers, had not read the BMF Final Report themselves when they chopped and changed their Cabinet decision about the Report.
At first, the Cabinet did not want to publish the BMF Final Report unless the Ahmad Nordin BMF Inquiry Committee took responsibility for their publication. Then it decided at its Cabinet meeting on January 22 to table the BMF Final Report and a Government White Paper in Parliament, and have a special debate on the BMF ON March 11 and 22.
Last Wednesday, the Cabinet again back-tracked, by refusing to table the BMF Final Report as a Command Paper, and also refusing to allow a special Parliamentary debate on the BMF Final Report.
I want to ask the Ministers, in particular all the MCA, MIC, Gerakan and most UMNO Ministers what right they have to make decisions on the BMF final Report, when they had not read the Final report themselves. If Cabinet Ministers dare not demand from the Prime Minister that they be given copies of the BMF Final Report, before the Cabinet is asked to decide on it, then clearly the present batch of Ministers are merely yes-man of the Prime Minister.
Datuk Samy Vellu should be thoroughly ashamed of himself that he received the BMF Final Report only two days ago. How could he adopt the Government White Paper when he had not read the BMF Final Report in the first place? All the MCA, Gerakan and UMNO Ministers should explain this to the MPs and the Malaysian public.
I am shocked beyond belief and words that Malaysia’s Cabinet Ministers operate in this irresponsible manner, adopting and approving Government White Paper on the BMF Final Report, when they had not read the Report in the first place – and although it had been submitted to the authorities by the Inquiry Committee three months ago!
I say shame on Datuk Samy Vellu and the Cabinet Ministers, and that they should all apologise to Parliament and the Malaysian people for not taking their Cabinet responsibilities seriously enough.
Call on Deputy Foreign Minister to name the ‘close countries’ out to destroy Malaysia
The Deputy Foreign Minister, Datuk Abdul Kadir Sheikh Fadzir, made a very serious allegation at Kulim Barisan Nasional civics course which was opened by MCA President, Tan Koon Swan.
Datuk Kadir said there were ‘one or two’ countries who ‘profess to be our close friends’ which were out to disrupt national and racial unity in Malaysia by weakening the Barisan Nasional
Government and undermining the national economy.
As a responsible Deputy Foreign Minister, Datuk Kadir should either come straight out and name these countries, stating the evidence for his allegation, or he would stand accused of trying to sacrifice Malaysia’s foreign policy interests for political motives.
If Datuk Kadir could produce satisfactory grounds to justify his serious allegation of interference and even subversion against a ‘close country’, the DAP will give open support that Malaysia should produce ant evidence, then he should stop acting so irresponsibly for he must not forget that is he is Deputy Foreign Minister.
It is not without significance that Datuk Kadir made this allegation against a ‘close country’ at a function opened by Tan Koon Swan. Malaysians will remember that recently, the MCA charged the Singapore Government with trying to politically persecute Tan Koon Swan because of Tan’s arrest in Singapore for criminal breath of thrust, cheating and fraud charged in connection with the Pan El scandal.
Is Datuk Kadir now saying that the Foreign Ministry of which he represents is of the view that the Singapore Government’s arrest of Tan Koon Swan is an ‘unfriendly act’, designed to weaken the Barisan Nasional.
I would like to ask Datuk Kadir what would be the Malaysian Foreign Ministry’s position over Hong Kong Government’s arrest of George Tan over the BMF scandal, if George Tan who is a Malaysian, had been a Prominent MCA official at that time?
I ask the Foreign Minister, Tengku Rithaudeen, to publicly clarify whether the speech of Deputy Foreign Minister is the official stand of Wismaputra and Cabinet.