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While all eyes are set on former premier Mahathir Mohamad for his role in the alleged illegal granting of citizenship to immigrants in Sabah for votes - dubbed ‘Project IC' -opposition Anwar Ibrahim may find himself in the same firing line.
Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs (Ideas) chief executive officer Wan Saiful Wan Jan said while the recently announced Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) to investigate the matter could prove damaging to Mahathir's legacy, Anwar was similarly part of that legacy when he served as deputy prime minister.
"Some people still blame Anwar for bringing Umno into Sabah before this. The damage will be to the legacy of Mahathir's administration that influenced all senior ministers at that time and if Anwar is involved then he will be tarnished," he said when contacted.
If any evidence emerges from the RCI implicating Anwar, he added, the damage would be serious for the opposition coalition's chief.
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Wan Saiful (left) added that while Najib may have been forced into announcing the RCI as damage control due to the defections in Sabah, it would be an opportunity to break away from Mahathir's shadow if he is able to manage the damage inflicted to Umno.
However, political analyst Ong Kian Meng when contacted said while Sabahans may still resent Anwar for bringing Umno into the state, most of the details of 'Project IC' were already in the public domain and did not implicate Anwar.
"The key would be what the RCI reveals but a lot of these things have already been out there except that they are not officially documented," he said.
Anwar had last year claimed that he was "kept out of the loop"when he was deputy prime minister under Mahathir's watch.
Mahathir himself had dismissed that the RCI would serve no purpose and warned that its outcome, either way, would harm the BN.
Najib safe
Ong said even though the RCI may hurt Umno and Mahathir, Najib would remain in a comfortable position.
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Ong added that even though it will do some damage to BN in Sabah as the investigation begin, it would not dramatically sway voters as the idea that immigrants were illegally granted citizenship was already public knowledge in Sabah even though there were no official admission.
The main backlash, Ong said, would come if Najib succumbs to internal pressure from Umno against taking any action once the RCI findings are published.
He noted that the premier had on several occasions delayed the announcement of the RCI since February due to pressure from Umno.
‘Culprits will inevitably be revealed'
Asked about criticism that the RCI's term of reference did not include the need to identify the culprits or proposed solutions if it was proven true that immigrants were illegally granted citizenship, Ong said the implications were too serious to ignore even though it were not in the commission's scope.
"It would be difficult for them not to at least say something (on those matters), the press will certainly ask about it and the people who come in to testify would touch on it.
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Echoing this, Ideas' Wan Saiful said if the commissioners attempt to avoid going near the culprits or solutions to the problem altogether on the basis that it is not part of the RCI's scope, its credibility would come into question.
"For example if a witness is called and they say a certain leader told me to do this (give out identity cards), if the commissioners say ‘no you can't touch on this because it is not in our scope' they will lose all credibility.
"While the RCI will be investigating the blue identity card problem, the public will be judging its credibility," he said.
In the 1999 Likas Election Petition case at the Kota Kinabalu High Court, a Filipino by the name of Fuad Ari from the island of Tawi-Tawi gave a court statement that he obtained his Malaysian identity card through ‘Projek IC’.
ReplyDeleteSince the 1980s, there have been so many Sabahans from the grassroots level to community and political leaders voicing their concerns about this issue. This is a real and serious issue that affects the lives of genuine Malaysian citizens in Sabah and the problem may have already seeped to the Peninsular Malaysia. It concerns national security, economic and job opportunities as well as health issues. It has tarnished our electoral rolls. And yet, Dr.M still want to back up the illegals whilst Anwar keep silent on this matter.
ReplyDeletetidak mustahil juga Anwar terlibat sama dalam skandal projek IC.. beliau adalah TPM dan menteri kewangan pada waktu itu.. mustahil sebagai orang kanan PM beliau tidak memainkan peranan beliau dalam kes ini..
ReplyDeleteAnwar dan Mahathir merupakan orang pertama yang perlu disiasat bila RCI dilaksanakan kelak.
Deletenamun seperti biasa, jika Anwar didapati terlibat dengan skandal projek IC ini, beliau akan nafikan sekeras2nya dan tidak mustahil jika sekali lagi beliau arahkan penyokong2 beliau untuk melakukan demonstrasi untuk mempertahankan beliau.. sebab itu dia tidak risau..
ReplyDeletemungkin sekarang ini Anwar sedang dalam dilema.. jika beliau bersetuju dengan RCI, kemungkinan besar tembelang beliau akan terbongkar.. jika beliau membantah, dikhuatiri sokongan terhadap beliau akan turun mendadak..
ReplyDeleteSabahan janganlah percaya dengan agenda2 dan janji2 pakatan. Anwar sendiri terlibat dalam membawa masuk warga asing beramai2 ke Sabah.
DeleteAnwar patut disiasat dalam RCI, sesiapa terlibat dalam projek ic harus disiasat.
ReplyDelete