This comes after a recent call by Shafie Apdal, who leads Parti Warisan Sabah, urging Sabahans to forgive Mahathir for the greater good of the nation.
Shafie said only Mahathir could take Malaysia out of its present problems.
But Jeffrey Kitingan, who heads the opposition Parti Solidariti Tanah Airku, disagrees.
He said forgetting Mahathir’s 22-year reign is not easy for Sabahans, adding that the ill-will against the former Umno strongman remains to this day.
“He is only fighting to get rid of the current prime minister Najib Razak. But I don’t believe in his words.
“To him, Sabah’s rights are temporary and lands should belong to the federal government. Forgiving is only for God, we the people cannot forget what happened,” he said.
Jeffrey’s stand is not surprising.
Mahathir has been largely blamed for the so-called Project IC, a clandestine project under which thousands of foreigners were given Malaysian citizenship, transforming Sabah’s demography to benefit the Umno-led Barisan Nasional (BN) ruling coalition.
Sharing Jeffrey’s sentiments on Mahathir is BN’s Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) president Teo Chee Kang, who is also a special tasks minister.
“The irreversible damage that he has done to Sabah in changing the population demography of Sabah via Project IC, can Sabahans trust a leader who would sacrifice the state’s interest for personal political interest?” he asked.
Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) president Yong Teck Lee and Parti Harapan Rakyat Sabah president Lajim Ukin, both members of the opposition Gabungan Sabah, said the fact that Shafie had made the statement proved that he himself believed Mahathir had done something wrong.
“Otherwise, Shafie wouldn’t have said it. I am more interested to know what Shafie thinks are the mistakes and misdeeds which he said the people should forgive Mahathir for,” Yong said.
Kadazandusun Murut (KDM) and Chinese leaders from BN parties were more blunt about what they thought of Shafie’s suggestion.
Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) secretary-general Johnny Mositun and United Pasok Momogun Kadazandusun Murut Organisation (Upko) acting president Wilfred Madius Tangau, for instance, put the blame squarely on Mahathir for the Project IC, particularly because the 93-year-old had openly admitted to it in the past.
Both said Mahathir’s excuse that what he did was no different than first prime minister Tunku Abdul Rahman was irrelevant because giving citizenship to people from other countries wantonly was an act of treason that undermined Malaysia as a whole.
“I just met an old native woman in Tamparuli who is a holder of the red IC. She is sad because she recently found out her name was being used by someone else. How can we forgive Mahathir?” asked Tangau whose Tuaran parliamentary constituency encompasses the state seat of Tamparuli.
‘Support Mahathir and lose support’
Sabah MCA deputy chairman Francis Goh, said Shafie’s readiness to accept Mahathir was because Warisan was a “sub-contractor” of Mahathir’s PPBM.
According to Goh, forgiveness from Sabahans does not mean history can be reversed.
“Sabahans all know Warisan is the beneficiary of Project IC, thus they cannot garner support from KDM and Chinese communities in Sabah and that is why they will fail in the coming election,” he said.
Sabah Umno deputy information chief Ramlee Marahaban and Sabah Gerakan chairman Gordon Leong questioned Shafie for asking Sabahans to emulate DAP’s Lim Kit Siang and PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim in forgiving Mahathir.
Ramlee said Anwar and Lim had their personal interests to topple the government and were using Mahathir to do so.
Leong said the duo were not even Sabahans and their stand on Mahathir was not relevant to Sabah.
Political activist and Sabah Firstborn Society chairman Zainnal Ajamain said Shafie’s call was at the risk of Warisan losing support from Sabahans.
“Furthermore, if PH still insists in choosing Mahathir, do not blame the Sabah and Sarawak people when they lose Sabah and Sarawak in GE14,” he said.
Activist Anne Lasimbang from Pacos Trust said Mahathir’s role in Project IC in Sabah had caused deep resentment among people in rural Sabah, many of whom remain stateless due to lack of documents.
She said it would take time for the locals to forgive Mahathir.
“The reality is, Mahathir is probably suffering from bad karma. He did the same to the late Tunku Abdul Rahman. Now he is living Tunku’s life, experiencing what Tunku must have felt towards the end. If Anwar wanted to forgive him, then it’s up to him, it’s a personal decision,” she said.
Let’s move on
But the opposition Parti Cinta Sabah (PCS) president Wilfred Bumburing and Sabah PH chairperson Christina Liew said for the sake of the nation, it was better to forgive and move on.
“If we continue to squabble, the country will not work. Mahathir won’t be the prime minister for long. He is committed to reform the police, the Attorney-General’s Office, MACC… something that won’t happen if Najib continues to rule,” said Bumburing.
Former Sabah state secretary Simon Sipaun also believed it was a good time to forgive Mahathir and to look at the veteran statesman in his present role.
He said Mahathir had no role in the government for the past 14 years. He said during the period, the present government could rectify the Project IC problem if they really wanted to.
“Malaysians in Sabah should judge Mahathir in the context of his present role. Be realistic and objective and be guided by the head, not the heart,” he said.
Time to forgive Mahathir for greater good, says Warisan chief Shafie