Mat King Leather (Anwar Ibrahim) tells off LGE

Lim Guan Eng at KD Tun Razak periscope, 1630hrs Friday 9 Dec 2011

Yesterday, Opposition Leader and Adviser to PKR Anwar “Mat King Leather” Ibrahim called up Penang Chief Minister and told him off, for accepting Minister of Defense Dato’ Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s invitation and later challenge to dive with the Perdana Class Scorpene submarine.

Lim’s dive with KD Tun Razak on Friday 1545-1715hrs on Friday 9 December 2011 60 nautical miles off the cost of Langkawi fully certified that the submarines are operational and debunked all lies, perpetuated by Anwar Ibrahim’s closest politicians which include his daughter and PKR Vice President Nurul Izzah Anwar. On 5 August 2010, Nurul Izzah told Jakarta based newspaper that “The submarines are not able to dive”, which is sinister agenda to perpetuate the hate towards the Government on worthless spending.

11 December 2011 | last updated at 08:45am

Of submarines and politics

By A Jalil Hamid
jalil@nstp.com.my | 0 comments

Zahid outmanoeuvres his critics

KD Tun Razak ready to leave port in Langkawi on Friday. Pic by Mohd Yusni Ariffin

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IT was a rare invitation to opposition leaders that was hard to refuse, taking a ride in one of the Royal Malaysian Navy’s two submarines. Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng, sporting a new hairstyle, had flown to Langkawi with his two deputy chief ministers on Friday to go on board Scorpene Perdana class KD Tun Razak to see for himself whether it could dive, as submarines are supposed to do.

After diving to a depth of 30m with the diesel-powered submarine, Lim gave his thumbs up for his 55-minute outing: “There is no doubting it now…it can dive. If we are talking about a submarine, then, of course, it can dive.”

Also contrary to opposition claims that the purchases of the submarines were wasteful and an unnecessary burden on taxpayers, Lim went on to declare that there was the need for the submarines and that he was proud of the crew’s ability in handling them.

“For 32 officers and crew to be able to function and operate in an enclosed space for a long period of time is an exceptional and impressive achievement,” he said.

It was certainly a major public relations coup for Defence Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and the RMN in successfully staging the trip for the Pakatan Rakyat trio.

This is especially so since both Mindef and the RMN have been battling intense negative public perception before and after the arrival of the multi-million dollar submarines from France.

The PKR member of parliament from Lembah Pantai, for example, had once told the Indonesian media that our submarines were allegedly defective and could not dive. Ironically, the MP was conspicuously missing from the Langkawi trip.

There is a bigger picture here. We have seen the opposition throwing allegations about certain defence purchases and the capability of the armed forces and their assets and making few apologies, if at all, when they are found to be misleading.

Zahid said Mindef had to defend the good name of the armed forces, especially the navy.

“We do not want to play the opposition’s political game, but we are forced to do so.”

The acquisition of a modern submarine force, after a decade of planning and decision making, is part and parcel of the overall modernisation of the Malaysian defence forces in order to make them more capable and credible in the region.

Malaysia has vast oil and gas resources in the South China Sea. A strong and modern naval fleet, backed by a submarine force, is therefore vitally important in safeguarding our sovereignty.

Still on the issue of security, we seldom hear of the opposition singing praises for the thousands of servicemen and ex-servicemen for their sacrifices in maintaining the country’s peace and security.

Pas deputy leader Mohamad Sabu’s (a.k.a. Mat Sabu) controversial statement that communist insurgents, not the policemen, were the real heroes in the Bukit Kepong incident was a case in point.

Mat Sabu was not the only Pakatan leader prone to making gaffes.

In September, Guan Eng had to apologise to the Sultan of Johor and his subjects over the alleged disparaging remarks Guan Eng made about Johor when he was meeting foreign journalists in Singapore.

The issue then was also about security and how it was “safer” to be in Penang than in Johor if you are a Singaporean.

Someone noted, despite opposition leaders often undermining the credibility of the Polis DiRaja Malaysia, ironically they would be the first to dash to the police station to lodge reports.

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The dive off the coast of Langkawi along the northern most corridor of the Malacca Strait basically kill Anwar’s and Anwarista’s evil agenda to use the submarine as a strategic tool in their perpetuated ‘Politics of Hatred‘. Lies and more lies were thrown into the whole scheme of things of the acquisition of the French made submarines and training program that was inked in June 2002.

Before Lim’s dive on Friday, Defense Minister Zahid already brought several PAS Leaders which include MPs into KD Tunku Abdul Rahman when then the lead boat in the submarine squadron was berthed alongside during LIMA 2009. On Wednesday 7 December, several BN and Independent MPs were also brought into KD Tun Razak.

HRH Sultan of Selangor in the PASKAL cap and Deputy Chief of Navy accompanying him onboard KD Tun Razak

The submarines capability have been proven all the while. For example, when KD Tun Razak arrived for the first time on our shores in july 2010 and just before berthed alongside at TLDM Lumut, HRH Sultan Selangor Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah Ibni Almarhum Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah dived in the Malacca Straits with Deputy Defense Minister Dato’ Dr Abdul Latif Ahmad and Chief of Navy Adm Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Hj Jaafar. HRH Sultan Selangor who is also the Captain-in-Chief of the Navy also dived again with KD Tun Razak in South China Sea, in August.

His Majesty Seri Paduka Baginda Yang DiPertuan Agong XIIITuanku Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin Ibni Sultan Mahmood not only dived with KD Tunku Abdul Rahmanon 10 March this year, he was also brought to an abyssal depth of below 1,000 ft to prove its full capability . KD Tunku Abdul Rahman also did live firing exercise of launching the SM 39 Exocet missile from the depth of 180 ft on 26 July last year.

This is the checkmate for Anwar and his Anwaristas, as far as the perpetuated lies about the submarines acquisition is concern. In short, Anwar’s and Anwaristas’ ‘vessel of politics of hatred’ was torpedoed with DAP Secretary General Lim Guan Eng as the most valuable key witness.

- bigdogdotcom