Sabahans laugh at ‘opposition role in Sulu incursion’ claim

Anwar Ibrahim speaking in Labuan

Anwar Ibrahim di Beaufort Sabah

Malaysiakini

Sabahans who attended PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim’s rallies yesterday appear to take accusations linking Pakatan Rakyat leaders to the Sulu incursion as a joke.

Most people in the crowds at rallies in both the rural and urban areas, numbering a couple of thousands, laughed at the matter when it was raised.

“The defence minister said that the opposition leader is involved in the Lahad Datu incursion. Pulak dah,” Anwar said to laughter in the rural Matunggong.

“They say I met with (Moro National Liberation Front leader) Nur Misuari. But he was invited, as then governor of Mindanao, by (then prime minister) Dr Mahathir (Mohamad),” he said, referring to a photograph of him greeting Nur Misuari published by Umno blogs recently.

The same message was repeated in Kota Kinabalu, to a similar response from the crowd.

Caretaker Defence Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said three “opposition leaders”, including a Sabahan, were involved in the plot of the self-styled heir to the Sulu sultanate to invade Sabah.

Penampang PKR candidate Ignatious Dorell Leiking then responded that he believes that he, PKR’s Subang candidate R Sivarasa and PKR’s Batu candidate Tian Chua were likely the accused, and he went on to deny the allegations.

Anwar also denied saying that he told his former boss Mahathir to “just die”, as reported by the New Straits Times.

“What I said was ‘Mahathir, you are already 83-years-old, so why are you going about trying to bury people? To be a good person we must all take care of our own graves’,” he said to applause.

Ex-Suhakam commissioners campaign for Pakatan

Meanwhile, former Human Rights Commission (Suhakam) commissioner Jannie Lasimbang, whose term has just ended, has come out in support of Pakatan for parliamentary seats in Sabah.

One of the most engaging speakers at the Kota Kinabalu rally last night, Jannie said putting Pakatan into federal power would allow changes in areas under federal jurisdiction, such as citizenship, infrastructure and development grants.

“What is the value of Sabah autonomy if BN remains in Putrajaya? If SAPP and Star win parliamentary seats, they will be sidelined in Parliament and we will be neglected again,” the Sabahan said.

“We are tired of being called fixed deposits but remain poor, as the people who are easily pushed around.”

Jannie, who had worked on the withheld Suhakam report on native land rights, was preceded by fellow Sabahan and former Suhakam chairperson Simon Sipaun, who also called on the people to support Pakatan Rakyat.

SAPP president Yong Teck Lee also condemned Zahid’s allegations, calling him “irreponsible” for “trying to play politics with security matters”.