Shafie: Look at PM's contributions, not petty issues

KIMANIS POLLS | One should look at the volume of contribution from Dr Mahathir Mohamad instead of pinpointing one or two unpleasant issues surrounding the premier, said Sabah Chief Minister Shafie Apdal.

"Tun (Mahathir) has contributed a lot. Don't deny that," he said, adding Mahathir contributed a lot to the progress of the country in spite of all the obstacles.

"There is a limitation in us and humans are no angels. We are not perfect and we are bound to make mistakes," he told the media after attending a Chrismas event at Pekan Membakut on the first day of the Kimanis by-election campaign.

In his second tenure as the premier, Mahathir knew he needed to do good things and that was why he chaired the special cabinet committee for the review of the Malaysia Agreement (MA63), according to Shafie.

"So do not look at one or two issues and ignore the huge contribution Mahathir has made," he said, adding the prime minister listens to the voices from Sabah.

Shafie pointed out that Mahathir was not the one who issued identity cards to immigrants in the 1980s, and the National Registration officers were responsible for the fiasco. 

Earlier, Shafie confirmed that Mahathir will not campaign in Kimanis, citing the prime minister's overwhelming workload. 

Shafie was asked if the arrangement was such because Sabahans still linked Mahathir to the "Project IC" scandal.

Mahathir had frequently campaigned for Pakatan Harapan in by-elections after GE14.

Malaysiakini reported that Sabahans equate Mahathir with "Project IC", which saw thousands of foreigners in the state being given citizenship, which had dramatically altered the state's demography.

However, a royal commission of inquiry (RCI) on the matter had blamed corrupt civil servants for the project.

Mahathir, in 2013, defended the granting of citizenship to foreigners in Sabah as a "lawful" act and pointed out how Tunku Abdul Rahman had similarly given out citizenship to many purportedly "unqualified persons" when he was in power.

Meanwhile, Shafie took a neutral stand on Mahathir's tenure.

"I told him (Mahathir) that as long as he is there, I will give my full support to him," he said.  

"To us, whoever is the prime minister, we give him full support," added Shafie.

Harapan chief secretary Saifuddin Abdullah said the coalition should focus on fulfilling its manifesto rather than harp on the issue of transition between Mahathir and Anwar. 

However, PKR Youth chief Akmal Nasir insisted that Harapan should set a timeline for Mahathir to step down. - Mkini