by Parliamentary Opposition Leader, DAP Secretary-General and MP for Tanjung, Lim Kit Siang, in Penang on Sunday, February 20, 1994:
The refusal of the Sabah Yang di Pertua Negeri to swear in Joseph Pairin as Sabah Chief Minister since 9,40 p.m. yesterday although PBS had won clear majority with 25 seats is an undemocratic and unconstitutional attempt at a coup d’tat engineered by Barisan Nasional
The refusal of the Sabah Yang di Pertua Negeri to swear in PBS leader, Datuk Joseph Pairin Kitingan as Sabah Chief Minister since 9.40 p.m. yesterday although PBS had won clear majority with 25 seats is an undemocratic and unconstitutional attempt at a coup d’tat engineered by the Barisan Nasional.
After camping outside the Sabah Istana grounds for some 16 hours, Joseph Pairin was informed at 1,15 p.m. today that the Sabah Yang di Pertua could not conduct a swearing-in ceremony today because he was indisposed, and that the swearing-in ceremony would be held tomorrow at 10 a.m.
Earlier, however, the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Dr. Mahathir Mohamad had said in Kuala Lumpur that the Sabah Yang di Pertua Negeri could not establish who should be sworn in as Chief Minister because he could not determine who had the confidence of the majority of the elected representatives.
When did Dr. Mahathir become the adviser, confidante and spokesman of the Yang di Pertua Negeri of Sabah on the appointment of the Chief Minister of the State? This is clearly a most undemocratic and unconstitutional interference with the Sabah democratic process by the Federal Government.
From Dr. Mahathir’s explanation for the delay in the swearing-in of Joseph Pairin as Sabah Chief Minister, it is clear that the reason given by the Sabah Istana that the Yang di-Pertua is indisposed is only an excuse to give the Barisan Nasional another 21 hours to engineer a majority from its 23 seats won last night, by buying over a few PBS Assemblymen.
Dr. Mahathir charged that the PBS assemblymen had been ‘detained’ by the PES leader. I understand that it is not only the PBS Assemblymen who had been ‘detained’, but that UMNO assemblymen had also been detained by the UMNO Sabah leader.
The Sabah Yang di Pertua Negeri should stay above the fray of partisan politics, and there can be no excuse for him to claim that he could not swear in Joseh Pairin as Chief Minister because he could not determine who enjoys the confidence of the majority of the elected representatives.
The 25 PBS Assemblymen elected last night is the only constitutional and honourable yardstick the Sabah Yang di Pertua Negeri can use to determine who should be sworn in as Chief Minister, and not to wait, for the probability and possibility that the 23-seat minority of Barisan Nasional could be converted into a simple majority if time is allowed for the Barisan Nasion¬al leaders to buy over a few PBS Assemblymen.
The Sabah Yang di Pertua Negeri has grossly abused his powers, duties and functions as the head of State of Sabah in ‘playing polities’ on the formation of the new Sabah state gov¬ernment.
The inexcusable delay in the swearing-in of Joseph Pairin as Sabah Chief Minister will be another ‘black day for democracy’ in Sabah – as it is no less than an advertisement to Malaysia and the world that Sabah Assemblymen are treated as commodities who could be bought and sold to the highest bidder.
DAP calls for an immediate halt to. the illegal, undemocratic and unconstitutional power grab in Sabah
DAP calls on all concerned for an immediate halt to the illegal, undemocratic and unconstitutional power grab in Sabah.
DAP also calls on Dr. Mahathir and the Deputy Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, who had spearheaded the Barisan Nasional Sabah general elections campaign, to honour the verdict of the Sabah voters and to stop blocking the swearing-in of Joseph Pairin as Sabah Chief Minister.
If Mahathir and Anwar want to unseat Joseph Pairin as Sabah Chief Minister by causing enough defections of PBS Assemblymen over to the Barisan Nasional, this should take place after Joseph Pairin had been sworn in as Chief Minister!
Malaysia’s international credentials as a parliamentary democracy would be seriously undermined if the voters’ verdict as expressed in last night’s general elections could be immediately nullified by undemocratic ‘back-room deals and horse-tradings’ involving Federal Government leaders in. Kuala Lumpur.