I have just read online reports of what Tun Dr. Mahathir said earlier today, warning Malaysians that the country may never see a Barisan Nasional (BN) government again if Pakatan Rakyat (PR) is voted into Putrajaya alleging that PR “would do everything possible to stay in power forever”.
The former Prime Minister who is confirming growing perceptions of Malaysians that he is “back in the saddle” as de facto Prime Minister, especially with the present premier Datuk Seri Najib Razak proving to be the most vacillating PM in the nation’s history worse than his predecessor Tun Abdullah, is now indulging his favourite past time of fear mongering with both immunity and impunity.
This is not the first time Mahathir has made the wild and reckless allegation that if Pakatan Rakyat wins the federal government in the next 13th General Election, it will signify the end of democracy in Malaysia as PR would never allow any future elections where it would lose power in Putrajaya.
This is utter nonsense.
Firstly, there are substantial numbers of Malaysians who will not regard the prospect of the country never seeing again a Barisan Nasional government as a national catastrophe or disaster, as they regard this as the greatest blessing for the country in view of the rampant corruption, abuses of power, socio-economic injustices, and the worsening of the politics of hatred and lies resulting in deepening racial and religious polarisation in the county.
But whether a Barisan Nasional government will become history, never again to be entrusted with the responsibility to govern the country, will be a decision to be made by Malaysians through the ballot box and not to be decided by the Pakatan Rakyat.
On behalf of Pakatan Rakyat, I can state and pledge that if PR is voted into Putrajaya in the 13th General Election, PR will respect and accept the verdict of voters if they want to vote UMNO/BN back to power in the 14th General Election in another five years down the road.
I challenge Najib and Mahathir to make a similar public commitment that UMNO will peacefully effect transition of federal power in Putrajaya if this is the electoral verdict of Malaysians in the 13th General Election?
It has not escaped public notice that Najib and Mahathir have been conspicuously silent on this point.
Are both Najib and Mahathir prepared to make a public pledge to accept the people’s verdict in the 13th GE, i.e. a PR federal government in Putrajaya with Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim as the seventh Malaysian Prime Minister, or is Najib’s claim of wanting to make Malaysia the “world best democracy” unable to pass its first elementary test?
(Speech at the Sabah DAP “Janji Ditepati” Public Hearing at Hotel Emas, Tawau on Thursday 6th September 2012 at 8 pm)