The Parliamentary Select Committee on Integrity was to meet this morning in connection with the subject of “Project False I/Cs” in Sabah, which had also been termed by some as “Project Mahathir”, resulting in the extraordinary increase of foreigners with their numbers exceeding Sabahans in the state population.
Yesterday morning, members of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Integrity received SMS from Parliament reminding them of the meeting which was fixed three weeks ago at its previous meeting on April 24.
Last evening, the morning SMS was countermanded by fax and SMS from Parliament postponing tomorrow’s meeting to an indefinite date. No reason for the sudden postponement was given and until now I do not know the cause for the cancellation of today’s meeting.
Earlier yesterday, I had proposed that former Prime Minister Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad should appear before the Parliamentary Select Committee on Integrity to throw light on the “Project False I/Cs” which had been described by some as “Project Mahathir”, alleging that Mahathir was the mastermind when he was Prime Minister in the massive and deliberate issuance of Malaysian I/Cs to foreigners based on false statutory declarations.
One estimate has put the foreigners in Sabah as around 1.75 million, as compared to 1.5 million genuine locals in Sabah — with foreigners exceeding Sabahans in their homeland.
It has also resulted in tens if not hundreds of thousands of foreigners fraudulently exercising the right to vote, changing the political power equation in Sabah state.
In the 1999 certified electoral rolls, there were 150,000 Sabah-born registered voters who were born between 1952 and 1960. However, according to the Sabah Statistics Department, there was only an increase of 120,000 persons based on birth registration — as the State population in 1951 was 334,141 and in 1960, 454,421.
With an estimated 80 per cent in this group registered as voters, there would only be about 100,000 Sabah-born voters for this period — which would mean that about one-third of voters allegedly born in Sabah between 1952-1960 were foreigners with ICs issued fraudulently with the use of falsified Sijil Akuan under the Project False I/Cs.
These are very serious allegations which Mahathir cannot allow to stand in the public domain uncontradicted or unclarified.
Mahathir spoke for the first time on the “Project Mahathir” or “Project False ICs” in the third part of his exclusive interview with Malaysiakini on Friday, where he made an outright denial of any knowledge about “Project Mahathir.”
I had announced yesterday that I will propose at today’s meeting of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Integrity that Mahathir be invited to give first-hand evidence on the serious allegation of Project False I/Cs which was responsible for the fraudulent legalization of hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants by the issue of false documentation, conferring on them voting and citizenship rights.
As Mahathir has said that the problem of corruption has worsened under the present administration as compared to his 22-year premiership, this would also be a very pertinent subject for Mahathir to appear and testify before the Parliamentary Select Committee on Integrity.
The Parliamentary Select Committee on Integrity has no powers to compel Mahathir to appear before it. It will be completely up to Mahathir whether he would want to do so.
I would not rule out completely however the possibility that Mahathir might avail himself of the invitation by the Select Committee to appear to give testimony both about the “Project Mahathir” allegations and the problem of corruption under his administration as well as under the present leadership.
Would Mahathir’s appearance, and what he says to the Select Committee, create concern, fear and trepidation among powerful quarters?
Is the sudden cancellation of the Integrity Select Committee meeting today just a pure coincidence that I had earlier proposed that Mahathir appear before it, or is it connected to my proposal?
[Media Conference Statement (3) in Parliament on Tuesday, 15th May 2007 at 12.30 pm]
Let’s face it.
Expecting Mahathir to appear before any committee is but a pipe dream. Everyone knows it. But everyone can continue to hope for it. But then there is the problem which is he has first to be invited to appear – and that is even more remote.
We can bring the horse to water but it is another to make it drink.
Is that the reason why TDM is in ICU now. The last time he got admitted was when he was due to attend UMNO’s AGM. Face saving move. Its ok lah, Suharto did that too and finally he got away with it. Good move Mamak
Mahathir is sakit, so don’t pressurise him, please.
as soon as he started talking about abdullah, he has to go to the hospital. is the curse working? i think there must be such an ‘Abdullah Curse’
‘Tis the season of cacellation and postponement, falalalala lalalala..
wow, this one Malaysia sure can 1..
First Building Bridges conference, no PSCI on Mahathir project, wonder what else lagi.
pura pura sakit la…. go hospital to sleep nia….
as if bn will really interrogate him… he has all their balls in his hands. how would they dare to challenge him. he can juz open the closet doors and let all their skeletons tumble down, the whole of bodoh-land wont be enough to contain them.
The very thought of it is sickening. Is it really true??? That is a country’s Prime Minister giving citizenship to illegal immigrants into his country just to overthrow his opponent political party. Or it is true but it’s just that he does not consider Sabah part of Malaysia.
A lot of West Malaysia seem to think so. We can see this when they talk about Peninsular Malaysia in Sabah and Sarawak they always say “back in Malaysia”; as if Sabah or Sarawak are not in Malaysia. Was that how our former PM feel that made him recruit illegals into Sabah.
Sabahan and Sarawakians are living feeling humanbeing. If anyone have forgoten, they decide to join Malaya and Singapore to form Malaysia 45 years ago. They are partners who made Malaysia possible. Please treat them as partners and equals.
May God please help us.
[deleted]
The general election is very near.
You know the prevailing mindset. For what he had done when in power to promote NEP and Islamisation and the so called pride he has given (for which he was dubbed by Times as “Master of Development”), he is treated as above accountability. If he were not held accountable so far for the various broadsides he had made against the Prime Minister & president of UMNO, would it be reasonable to suppose he could be made to account to The Parliamentary Select Committee on Integrity ?
The countermand by fax and SMS from Parliament postponing tomorrow’s meeting to an indefinite date is because (1) Project False IC(s) or Project Mahathir, if proven true, would be embarrassing to the government & UMNO and (2) they cannot risk his unpredictability of what he would say just in case he should unexpectedly decide to volunteer testify before the Committee.
This country’s leader/s had gone mad!
It took many people with red IC, mostly non Malays, decades to get a blue IC – some never did in their life time after contributing and sacrifying so much to build the country.
Tightening the screws on unprofessional, ie anti-govt bloggers
The blogsite operator who reported that Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi fainted at a function in Lumut, Perak, Sunday could face action including being charged under the Sedition Act if the article contained elements of slander. Deputy Minister of Energy, Water and Communications Datuk Shaziman Abu Mansor said the ministry was studying the report before deciding on the type of action to be taken against the blogger.
http://malaysia-today.net/blog2006/newsncom.php?itemid=4647
TDM should have a upper hand over everythings during his tenure. He is using selected ‘issue’ to drive his demands and send messages to those who ‘forgotten’ him only.
IJN will be the best place to gain ‘sympathies from public.
There have been too many times in recent months that there have been inexplicable postponements at the last moment.
It looks like those managing PSCI itself needs transparancy, integrity and accountability. How to have confidence in whatever they do?
It is not “sudden” cancellation. It is sudden planned cancellation.
Minister in PM’s Department Tan Sri Bernard Dompok has quit the as chairman of the Parliamentary Select Committee on the Integrity (PSCI). It seems the National Registration Department has refused to attend the committee relating to issuance of ICs to foreigners in Sabah. Bernard said “I feel that as a member of the cabinet, I may not be able to do justice to the tasks assigned to the committee by Parliament†– see report on front page of The Sun, May 17th.
I believe that Bernard made a principled move. He cannot with good conscience handle the issue fraught with conflicts of interest. There are implications to this latest development.
First when a government minister says that he could not do ‘ justice to the tasks assigned to the committee by Parliament’ does this imply that the government is only using the committee as a façade to buttress its rhetoric for Integrity Governance without real commitment to the principle?
Secondly, what real commitment is there where the PSCI has no “teeth†to compel attendance and testimony even by government departments? How can the PSCI do itys work? As what Sheriff Singh earlier posted, “there have been too many times in recent months that there have been inexplicable postponements at the last momentâ€Â.
More and more the impression is that the PSCI is just a whitewash and farce for which there is evinced no real commitment for it to effectively pursue the objective it was intended.
If a government minister can resign on these grounds it raises the question why the Opposition Head should remain to lend credibility to a government’s farce?
This is something YB that you should also seriously reflect upon.
[I am holding a media conference in Parliament at 12 noon on Bernard’s resignation and the two “bocor” BN MPs – Kit]
Perhaps it is time the Committee be given subpoena powers?