PR’s patriotic olive branch to PM and BN – to love and save Malaysia to preserve and promote unity, harmony and tolerance and ban spectre of May 13 to cobwebs of history

In my first Open Letter in 2014 to the Prime Minister and the Cabinet on 8th January 2014, I urged the first Cabinet meeting to send our a clear and unmistakable message to end the national drift and loss of leadership and direction to create an united, harmonious, just, and competitive and great Malaysian nation.

I zeroed in on the nation’s quintuplet of national crisis which warranted priority and immediate attention by the Cabinet – nation-building, economic, educational, security and anti-corruption.

In my second Open Letter in 2014 to the Prime Minister and the Cabinet on 22nd January, I posed the question whether the Barisan Nasional leadership is prepared to work with Pakatan Rakyat leaders to ensure that there could be no repetition of May 13 riots in Malaysia?

I lamented that the Najib administration had in the past fortnight remained “leaderless, headless, clueless and rudderless” and the government’s “aimless drift” had worsened with “no resolution in sight for the quintuplet of five crisis”.

I am writing this third Open Letter to the Prime Minister and the Cabinet before the Cabinet meeting today to welcome the Prime Minister’s statement yesterday that he will bring Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s idea of a “national consensus” to the Cabinet.

Najib must be mindful that in the three weeks since my first Open Letter, the quintuplet of national crisis – in particular on nation-building and national unity – has reached its worst level, not only during Najib’s five-year premiership but probably in the nation’s 56-year nation-building history.

It has reached a stage where a small group of traitors out to destroy the delicate fabric of Malaysia’s plural society in an incessant incitement of racial and religious hatred, tension and conflict have produced the following handiworks:

  • The two Penang Umno demonstration over the weekend where there was an unabashed and strident incitement of racial and religious hatred, tension and conflict, even raising the spectre of another May 13;
  • Hanging provocative banner “Jesus is the son of Allah” without the knowledge of church authorities outside three churches in Penang by irresponsible and reckless elements out to escalate the incitement of racial and religious hatred, conflict and tension; and
  • The throwing of two Molotov cocktails into the compound of the Church of the Assumption in Lebuh Farquhar, Penang, early Monday morning.

The heinous activities of a small group of traitors bent on inciting racial and religious hatred, conflict and tension to destabilize the country to cause another May 13 is not a problem which had cropped up only in the past three weeks but a national menace which had been in existence and threatened the unity and stability of Malaysia in the past few years, worsening in the past eight months after the May 5 general elections of 2013.

I am amazed at the “hands off” attitude adopted by the police and the Barisan Nasional government, which seem to have given this small group of traitors out to destabilise the country through incessant incitement of racial and religious hatred, conflict and tension, a blank cheque to do their worst.

Last month, the Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar shocked the country and the world with the wild and reckless “fair tale” of a plot the “topple the government” with a gathering at Dataran Merdeka on New Year’s Eve – as if the government of Malaysia has become so fragile and useless that it could be toppled with a gathering in Dataran Merdeka!

Neither the IGP nor the police force have been able to produce any evidence of a ‘topple government’ plot on New Year’s Eve, whether to support the IGP’s “fairy tale” or the subsequent “fairy tale” by the Kuala Lumpur deputy police Chief Amar Singh Ishar Singh that four NGOs were out to “create chaos” in Dataran Merdeka and would be bringing various weapons, including grenades and gas masks to stir up a commotion.

In the event, the “fairy tale” of the IGP and the KL deputy police chief proved to be no more than “fairy tales”.

All that the police was reduced to is to victimize Zul Raidy Ahmad Tarmizi, the man who printed T-shirts worn by protestors during the New Year Eve anti-price hike demonstration, on the ground the printing of such T-shirts could undermine parliamentary democracy and an offence under the Penal Code and the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 (Sosma), entailing draconian penalities.

How pathetic – incessant incitemernt of racial and religious hatred, conflict and tension no offence but printing T-shirts a heinous offence!

Malaysians are entitled to know why the Police had failed to act to interdict the treasonous activities of a small group of irresponsible and reckless people out to create national instability and another May 13 through incessant incitement of racial and religious hatred, conflict and tension – furthermore based on lies and falsehoods!

There is no doubt that if the Police had not been remiss in their duties, and kept the activities of the traitorous few out to incite racial and religious hatred, conflict and tension under their constant radar, the hanging of the provocative banners outside three churches in Penang by treacherous mischief-makers and the throwing of two Molotov cocktails into the compound of the Church of the Assumption in Penang would not have taken place.

After all, haven’t Malaysia got among the most competent and professional Special Branch in the world?

It is all very well for the Prime Minister to appeal for calm as the raging racial-religious issue came to a boil with the fire-bombing of a church in Penang, but what all Penangites and Malaysians want to know is why there is such a failure of police intelligence and security apparatus as reflected by these events?

Is the Cabinet prepared later today to direct the IGP to set up a special intelligence and security apparatus to deal with the treasonous activities of a small group of irresponsible and reckless people out to destabilize the country with incessant incitement of racial and religious hatred, conflict and tension?

If the Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Rakyat are united in their resolve that there will not be another May 13 riots in Malaysia, nobody could destabilize and the create the conditions for another May 13.

Why is the Prime Minister and the Cabinet so reluctant to do what right and patriotic for Malaysia.

The purpose of this third Open Letter which is released at 7 a.m. before the Cabinet meeting today is to urge the Prime Minister and the Cabinet to reciprocate the act of patriotism of the Pakatan Rakat leadership – to jointly endeavour and ensure there is continued harmony, goodwill and tolerance in Malaysia leaving the spectre of May 13 in the cobwebs of history.

Is the Prime Minister and the Cabinet prepared to work with Pakatan Rakyat on the great national issue of the day – to love and save Malaysia by preserving and promoting unity, harmony and tolerance and to ensure that there will not be another May 13 to blot the development of Malaysia?

Lim Kit Siang DAP Parliamentary Leader & MP for Gelang Patah