Dr M: "We offered to sell sand and use of airspace"
Malaysiakini has started its 3-part interview with former PM Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
The first revelation: It was not Singapore that demanded, but it's the Malaysian government that offered to sell sand and the use of Johor’s airspace to the tiny red dot.
Dr Mahathir repeated the statement at a press conference after the presentation of the Malaysian Business Corporate Governance Award 2005 in Kuala Lumpur this afternoon.
"That's what I heard. It's up to the government to verify it. You know, now our government is very transparent. They will tell everything... if you ask them," said Mahathir.
In the Malaysiakini interview, Dr Mahathir said the offers were made at a meeting in 2004 between the two countries -- that's after his retirement -- to get Singapore’s agreement to the building of a straight bridge.
The sale of sand, in particular, was to the tune of one billion square metres, or 50 million square metres a year for 20 years, he said.
“That will make Singapore one-and-a-half times its present size. It will be suitable for a population of, maybe, 10 million,” he added.
Mahathir, who in 1997 had stopped the sale of sand to and the use of Malaysian airspace by Singapore, compared the 'pasir dan langit' (sand and airspace) offer to Malaya’s historical ‘mistake’ of selling Singapore and Penang to the British colonialists.
Just as Malaya was ‘cheated’ into selling Singapore to the British for RM60,000 and Penang for RM10,000 then, the present government was selling sand - ‘a part of Malaysia’ - to Singapore, claimed Mahathir.
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Comments
Interesting... wish I had a subscription la. Budget these days, have to change lifestyle...
Posted by: hedonism
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May 24, 2006 12:23 AM
How do you sell sand in "square metres" ? What does he mean ?
Posted by: Laughing Boy
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May 24, 2006 10:18 AM
Cheated to sell Penang and Singapore? Here come the medicine man spin. Those contracts are never properly reveal in history text book.
Besides political pressure from British, like many feudalism chieftan, those ruler actually running short of MONEY to maintain their LIFESTYLE. And not to forget those ruler incompetency in social economy.
Posted by: moo_t
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May 24, 2006 12:36 PM
Cheated? I thought it was a willing buyer-willing seller arrangement?
History can always be reinterpreted.
Can we consider North Borneo (Sabah) and Sarawak was also cheated as well? Colonised and their assets (oil) stripped and profits eaten up by Malaya?
Posted by: limeuu
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May 24, 2006 12:47 PM
The british I believe did not buy Penang and sinagpore but leased it from the sultanate of kedah and johore respectively. the duration of the lease is "until the sun and the moon disappeared from the sky" or something like that. Hence until today, the state government of Penang and Sinagapore still continue to pay these yearly fees.
On the negotiations with singapore, it looked like some of the negotiators tried to make some money from the bridge deal, by offering singapore sand at a premium after Mahathir left and badawi took over. If this is the case, then there is a conflict of interest in the discussion, and therefore the discussion had to be stopped in order to stop the country from further embarrasment. The negotiator's action tentamounts to treachery.
Posted by: sydput
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May 24, 2006 01:47 PM
The one that they used for the contract of Sabah rental by Malaysia from the Sultan of Sulu was "forever and till the end of time". Hence Wisma Putra still pays RM5,000 to the heir of Sultan Sulu on 31 December every year.
Posted by: nukethem
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May 24, 2006 07:44 PM
As typical of him, he exaggerates:
From Wiki:
SG is now 699 km2 with a pop density of 6389/km2.
1.5 its size makes it 1050km2 and pop as big as HK's.
Far cry from 10/9/8m.
Posted by: riversandlakes
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May 25, 2006 03:34 AM
Nothing seems to be right with the present government after Tun M has left? Is he angling for a fight or to dump Badawi? Come come, this PM is selected by you and now you find faults with everything he does. No wonder during your tenure you have changed so many DPMs. Tun M : a word of advice, please retire gracefully and let the team for which you had selected during your tenure to do the work. It is very strange that the almost same team now does not agree with the policies that were agreed during the tenure of M as the PM. Again, I believe and I may be wrong, during his tenure, he might have been the prima-donna and shaffled over the whole cabinet. Now they see a chance to "disagree' with him-- to have it hit hard at him!
This one man does not want to fade away and who misses the lamelight very much and that explains why all these tirades comiong out. That also shows that this man thinks he is infallible and see his legacy being chipped away bit by bit. He cannot take it and that is the truth! He must stop and ponder his own march of follies and see the price that all Malaysians are paying, the latest being the hike is electricity tariffs through the lopsided agreements with the IPPs.
Posted by: peterpan
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May 25, 2006 09:42 PM
DR M is bitter and angry mainly because and I guess here he still sees his nemesis next door,LKY,MM of Spore enjoying all the power,limelight and the prestige as a senior leader of a country.
This is something that an extremly arrogant,ambitious man like Dr M find hard to stomach
Dr.M should know that LKY,at 83 is the exception rather than the rule,does he want Malayisa which is perfectly NORMAL in ALL aspects to be a special (FAKE)nation.I caution NOT.
Posted by: DELL
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May 28, 2006 07:39 PM