Remember Mahathir's promise to Suqui

MM Online - Dr M: PH would make Sabah, Sarawak equal to peninsula (extracts):

PETALING JAYA, April 11 — A Pakatan Harapan federal government would put Sabah and Sarawak back on par with the entirety of West Malaysia, said Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

The PH chairman said the pact would form a special Cabinet committee to re-examine the 1963 Malaysia Agreement that spells out each of the two Borneo states’ entitlements.

“This will include increasing the oil royalty for the states from five per cent to 20 per cent,”' he said in a Policy Talk on Sabah and Sarawak broadcast live through on Facebook today.

“What's more, 50 per cent of tax collected from Sarawak will be returned to the state on the condition that it will be responsible for its own education and healthcare,”' he said.

Dr Mahathir said a full report of such measures would be presented within six months of PH taking power.

Don't believe him as he's untrustworthy. Don't believe me? Ask the Chinese in Peninsular.

In 1999, when he was politically in hot soup because of his cruel treatment of Anwar Ibrahim, and a significant segment of Malay voters abandoned him, he had to depend on his most-disliked Chinese to support him in the general election.

Of course in every and any general elections, the voters would request for this and that from the competing candidates just as the competing candidates themselves would offer promises of benefits in what they formally called a manifesto, or in less formal terms, pork-barreling.

That's exactly what Mahathir is now offering Sarawak and Sabah, promises of this and that.

In 1999, before the general election, Mahathir promised Suqui, the Malaysian Chinese Organisation Election Appeals Committee to meet/fulfil its 17 appeal.

Suqui was made up of l3 organisations and had the endorsement of over 2,000 Chinese associations in Malaysia in 1999.

Suqui's 17-points requests were:

1 Encourage racial solidarity.
2 Increase democracy.
3 Defend human rights and uphold justice.
4 Eradicate corrupt practices.
5 Implement a fair economic policy.
6 Re-evaluate the privatisation policy.
7 Implement an education policy that is more progressive and liberal.
8 Encourage the development of all cultures.
9 Protect the environment.
10 Modernise and develop new villages.
11 Formulate a “House for Everyone” Policy.
12 Protect women’s rights.
13 Develop a fair media.
14 Restore the confidence of the people towards the police.
15 Improve welfare.
16 Respect workers’ rights.
17 Help the aborigines become self-reliant.

Anything racial?

Before the elections Mahathir and his cabinet ENDORSED in principle the 17-points appeal.

But after the elections in mid 2000 Mahathir not only rejected all their appeals but instead branded Suqui as a communist and extremist outfit over the appeals.

Yes sir, Suqui members were then treated like communists, traitors, drawn in comparison with Al’Ma’unah (armed cult group).

Alas, Suqui was not defended by MCA, Gerakan and also the opposition.

But it got worse. Mahathir's UMNO Youth threatened to raze the Kuala Lumpur Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall (KLSCAH) over the Suqui matter.

UMNO Youth's then vice-chief Abdul Aziz Sheikh Fadzir threatened to torch the building if an apology was not tendered over the appeals, endorsed by Suqui representing 2,000 Chinese organisations.

About 7 years later he entered KLSCAH (which his UMNO Youth threatened to burn down in 2000) to participate in a forum to discuss Malaysia's various cooperation with companies from China for major projects.

Earlier KLSCAH secretary-general Ser Choon Ing who was also secretary of the Mahathir-threatened Suqiu said Mahathir was more than welcome to use the hall to address his party members or hold press conferences.

Ser Choon Ing 

It'd appear that, unlike "someone", Ser harboured no grudge with Mahathir, even though it was during the latter's PM-tenure that his men threatened to burn down the building in 2000.

Secondly, Mahathir was PM for 22 years. For long stretches of his government, he enjoyed more than 2/3 majority in Parliament YET he did nothing on what he is now promising. I wonder who he would blame for his indifference to the concerns and benefits of Sarawak and Sabah?

Also read this FMT report titled Taib was Mahathir’s personal banker.

And as we have just reminded everyone of the above Suqui case, his promise has been bloody f**king worthless.