Bian hits out at Dr M over ‘be patient’ remark

The former premier had reportedly said that the people of Sabah and Sarawak be patient for the implementation of development in their states.

KUCHING: The blatant statement by former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad asking the people of Sarawak and Sabah to be patient for the implementation of development perfectly demonstrates to the people in the Borneo states what the Barisan Nasional government thinks of us, said Baru Bian, chairman of Sarawak PKR.

“We are regarded as the ignorant and unquestioning fixed deposit states that are in this country to be milked dry to fund the excessive spending crazes in Peninsular Malaysia.

“We have been patient for 49 years.  How many more years does this old man think he can fool us to wait?” asked Bian, who is Ba’Kelalan state assemblyman.

Mahathir was reported to have told reporters that the people of Sabah and Sarawak must be patient to wait for natural resources to be extracted and foreign investments to materialise before experiencing the same tempo of development as those in the peninsula.

He said: “In truth, I think the development of Sabah and Sarawak has outstripped the peninsula. Sarawak has the highest foreign direct investment and Sabah has the largest reserves of petroleum in the country.

“Just be patient and wait for the resources to be extracted and soon your earnings (and development) will increase,” Mahathir said.

Bian asked: “What does he mean by saying ‘Just be patient and wait for the resources to be extracted and soon your earnings (and development) will increase’?

“Umno and BN have been making huge ‘withdrawals’ from our oil and gas resources for over 30 years now, while giving the rakyat of Sarawak and Sabah crumbs to keep us quiet.

“I wish to ask him in his capacity as Petronas advisor what Petronas has been doing in Sabah and Sarawak all these years if not extracting our precious resources,” he said.