By Zainnal Ajamain
Taib Mahmud stepped down as the Chief Minister of Sarawak after holding the reign for 33 long years. He outlasted Dr Mahathir Mohamad, as the Prime Minister of Malaysia, by more than a decade.
His length as CM speaks volumes of the politician who stayed in office longer than any other leaders in Malaysia and his insight into Umno’s character.
It is interesting to note that never in the history of Malaysia has a head of a state acknowledged that Umno is NOT as good as it advertises itself to be and that Umno should be rejected from Sarawak.
In his speech to the Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB) Supreme Council last month, Taib sat out two prerequisites for his coming successor.
Firstly, Umno must not be allowed to enter Sarawak. Taib acknowledged that there are vast differences between the people in Sarawak and those from Malaya.
Secondly, his successor must maintain the rights of Sarawak when forming Malaysia which is based on “the Malaysia Agreement 1963, nothing more, nothing less”.
These two fundamentals turned Malaysian politics on its head and may have a far wider and in-depth consequences.
Taib has every reason to see Umno for what it really is.
Umno has over the years showed that it has become more racist and more intolerant. They bark hate overtones and use words of threats to whoever is against them.
In short they have turned Malaysia into a Fascist state.
As a responsible and visionary leader in Sarawak, this is a disease Taib does not want to spread in Sarawak.
Callous Umno
Sabah which is Sarawak’s closest neighbour embraced Umno in 1990.
In the process of embracing Umno, the people in Sabah had to sacrifice Usno.
In order for this to happen, its founder and the father of independence for Sabah – Tun Mustapha Harun – had to demote himself to ‘Timbalan Perhubungan Sabah Umno’.
But after Umno managed to secure its position in Sabah, Tun Mustapha was simply discarded like some dirty old rag into the dustbin of history.
Tun Mustapha died not as Umno member.
His Usno was already dusts and Tun Mustapha was buried as a simple man without the respect due to a leader in Sabah.
This is how ungrateful, churlish and crude Umno is to Sabah and its leaders.
The Barisan Nasional (BN) component parties are just ornaments that Kuala Lumpur will use at their convenience.
It is not about the people’s welfare and their needs. It is only about what Kuala Lumpur needs and what it will take.
This is not a secret and the people in Sarawak are fully aware of this.
The Sarawakians know that if not for Sabah, Umno would have been in the opposition since 1999.
If not because of Sabah, Umno would have lost in 2008. If not because of Sabah, Umno would have lost in 2013.
Yet even with all the sacrifices, losses, disadvantages and cost, Sabah was never given any special treatment from Umno.
The spineless Umno leaders in Sabah are too cowardly to assert their demands to Kuala Lumpur.
Instead Sabah is treated as if it is a poor pesky distant cousin coming to Kuala Lumpur begging for money even when the money in Kuala Lumpur is actually coming from Sabah.
This is what Najib means when he says Sabah is BN’s ‘fix deposit’ – to be used when needed otherwise left alone to survive on your own.
Alert Malaysians in Sarawak are learning from the mistakes and pitfalls experienced in Sabah.
The Umno, they know is spreading religious bigotry and intolerance. It is spreading hate and is threatening Malaysia with Malay supremacy.
Umno has no empathy, no reasoning and no conscience.
Tomorrow: Taib breaks covert bid to isolate Sabah from Sarawak.
Zainnal Ajamain is a British-trained economist. He has held several senior positions in the government and government think tanks and has worked as a university lecturer, researcher, stockbroker, economist and has published several papers in international media journals. He helped found non-governmental organisation, the United Borneo Front (UBF), and remains active in politics.
