Letter to editor
WHEN twice former premier Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad called on Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim (PMX) not to stifle discussions on the 3Rs (race, religion and royalty), the first thing that came to mind was the need for a Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) to investigate who instigated the bloodbath of May 13.
This has been on many people’s mind, especially when the accusation came directly from the late Tunku Abdul Rahman (TAR), Malaysia’s first PM and the nation’s founding father.
In fact, TAR had named Dr Mahathir as the man behind the poison pen letter. We want to know what his real intention was in penning the poison pen letter. Otherwise, why did the Tunku speak so strongly against Dr Mahathir? Did he, for example, play on the sentiments of his contemporary in UMNO against other races?
Racial harmony was good everywhere else
Why when there was racial harmony throughout the country, there were sporadic clashes sparked by a few political parties occurred mainly in Selangor and Penang?
Was it a nationwide racial riot or was it because the riots involved only a few political parties that were essentially race-based parties? As a citizen, I would also like to know what Dr Mahathir’s role in this dark episode of our country’s past was.
When the then UMNO lost many of the seats in Selangor while the coalition government lost Penang to the then opposition party Gerakan, what was Dr Mahathir’s role leading towards the May 13 episode that caused many innocent people to lose their lives?
While all these questions have been left unanswered, Dr Mahathir is now calling on Anwar to allow people to talk on the 3Rs. What is he up to?
Torn between the two
While I am personally not in favour of looking at the old wounds, I am sure even if PMX or His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim the King of Malaysia allowed the RCI to be set up, more truths would eventually unfold on what really transpired.
Dr Mahathir’s own record on the 3Rs is also not one that anyone in Malaysia would be proud of. One cannot forget what happened during Operasi Lalang and how he had stifled press freedom in the country.
One wonders if Dr Mahathir is only trying to create Operasi Lalang II so that he could accuse Anwar of stifling freedom of speech.
Nobody can beat the one-term former Langkawi MP with his already poor record in handling race relations in Malaysia.
With so many scandals possibly linked to him, the 98-year-old Dr Mahathir who administered the country for a span of 22 years and 22 months as the country’s fourth and seventh PM respectively should at least deal with the log in front of his own eyes than to look at the speck in Anwar’s eyes.
Otherwise, it is a matter of the pot calling the kettle black. Meanwhile, Anwar and the police should warn people against fanning the 3R sentiments knowing that it will not benefit anyone, especially in helping to revive the country’s economy. – May 29, 2024
Stephen Ng
Kuala Lumpur
The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Focus Malaysia.
