By Parliamentary Opposition Leader, DAP Secretary-General and MP for Tanjung Lim Kit Siang, in Petaling Jaya on Saturday, 6.6.1987:
Reminder to Datuk Seri Dr. Mahathir Mohamed that a ‘clean, efficient and trustworthy’ government would not take 10 months to find a solution to the $1.5 billion co-operative finance crisis.
The Prime Minster, Datuk Seri Dr. Mahathir Mohamed, said in Alor Star yesterday that the Government was looking for a solution to the problems besetting the 24 trouble deposit-taking co-operatives.
This is most disappointing, and the Prime Minister must be reminded that a ‘clean, efficient and trustworthy’ government would not take 10 months to find a solution to the $1.5 billion co-operative finance scandal – giving scant regard to the sufferings and hardships of the innocent 588,000 depositors and their families and dependants.
When Bank Negara invoke emergency powers and froze 23 co-operatives on August 8, with the Bank Negara Datuk Jaffar Hussein appearing with the Finance Minister, Daim Zainuddin in a joint press conference, the depositors were assured that the government would work out a solution in the quickest possible time, and at most within a month.
This one month has dragged out to 10 months, with no end in sight!
Why Cabinet is taking so long on the co-operative issue, when it could decide to abandon its decision to withdraw pensions for public servants with less than 10 years’ service without any deep thought or study?
The 588,000 co-operative depositors just cannot understand why the Cabinet and Government is taking such a long time to come out with a satisfactory solution for them when it could without any deep thought or study, make ‘instant’ decisions affecting the national economy and finances, like the Cabinet decision on April 22 to abandon the government decision to withdraw pensions for public servants with less than 10 years’ service.
The decision to abandon the government’s budgetary proposal withdrawing pensions for government servants was taken purely because the UMNO Ministers, in particular the Prime Minister, felt that this was urgent and crucial to their political survival in the UMNO presidential and Supreme council elections two days later.
Why is it the MCA and Gerakan Ministers have not been able to impress on the Cabinet that a fair and satisfactory solution to the $1.5 billion co-operative crisis is equally urgent and crucial for their political survival?
Call on Gerakan and MCA Ministers to stop allowing themselves to be played one against the other by UMNO over the co-operative issue.
In the last two weeks, the 588,000 co-operative depositors had been thoroughly confused by conflicting statements and claims by Gerakan and MCA Ministers and leaders over the $1.5 billion co-operative issue.
One thing is very clear however from the maze of confusion and contradiction of statements and claims by the Gerakan and MCA Ministers, that they are not only at odds against each other over how to rescue the 588,000 co-operative depositors, but they are prepared to ‘stab’ each other in the back to the joy and delight of the UMNO leaders.
The Gerakan and MCA Ministers should stop allowing themselves to be played one against the other by UMNO over the co-operative issue, but must take a firm and uncompromising stand that the government has the moral and political responsibility to ensure that the 588,000 co-operative depositors get full ‘dollar-for-dollar’ refund, inclusive of interest, by latest, March 1989!
Call on Bank Negara Governor go explain why Bank Negara had slashes the net assets of the 24 DTCs by $600 million in the last 10 months’ of freeze
On Monday, when the Gerakan Deputy Agriculture Minister, Alex Lee, announced that Gerakan leaders would be meeting with Bank Negara officials next week on the Gerakan’s Plan for the co-operative issue, he made an astounding statement.
Alex Lee revealed that the Bank Negara estimated that the assets of the 24 DTCs were only worth $300 million!
I had rechecked the Government White Paper on the Co-operatives tabled in Parliament last November, and satisfied myself that this $300 million figure is a far cry from the Bank Negara’s estimate in the White Paper that as at August 8, 1986, the total net assets of the 24 co-opratives amounted to $880.7 million.
I call on the Bank Negara Governor to explain how the assets of the 24 DTCs has fallen by some $600 million after they had been frozen by Bank Negara, and taken over by receivers. If there is indeed a loss of $600 million in the net assets of the 24 DTCs in the 10 months they were in the hands of Bank Negara and the receivers, then Bank Negara must bear full responsibility to make good the loss!
If the Bank Negara had slashed the net assets value of the 24 DTCs by some $600 million since August last year, then Alex Lee is telling a lie, and the credibility of the Gerakan leaders will reach a crisis point!
Another murder by illegal Indonesian Immigrant:DAP calls on Malaysian Government to lodge strong protest with Indonesian Government
The illegal Indonesian immigrant criminals have struck again in the cold blooded murder of farmer Chua Chee Peng, 33, in Kempas, about 20 km from Johore Bahru, in an armed robbery and injuring five other family members.
The Malaysian Government must send a strong protest note to the Indonesian Government against the callous crimes by the illegal Indonesian immigrants, and make clear that illegal Indonesian immigrants have overstayed their welcome in Malaysia and must expect the harshest treatment by the Malaysian authorities.
The illegal Indonesian immigrants cause not only immediate grave law and order problems, but will pose a grave threat to our social, economic and political stability n the medium and long term.
All levels of Malaysian society, all ethnic groups, must take a united common stand to demand the full repatriation of all illegal Indonesian immigrants.
Public anger must not be aroused only momentarily when there is a killing or atrocity committed by illegal Indonesian immigrants, quickly forgotten after the funeral or expression of anger. Public concern and pressure for the repatriation of illegal Indonesian immigrants must be sustained to ensure that the government authorities take serious steps to free Malaysians from the criminal depredations of the illegal Indonesian immigrants.
Let the 16 million Malaysians cry out with one single, mighty and sustained voice: “Illegal Indonesian immigrants, go back to Indonesia, and stop turning Malaysian into a haven for your crimes!”