1. Saya berada di Tawau pada 5 Oktober di atas jemputan dari seorang bekas calon parti lawan.
2. Ramai ahli UMNO di Sabah tidak dapat hadir bicara negarawan yang diadakan kerana dianjur oleh bukan UMNO. Kata mereka SUA UMNO amat marah jika ada ahli atau pemimpin yang hadir diperhimpunan ini.
3. Sesungguhnya saya sudah 15 tahun tidak ke Tawau. Sebab itu walaupun jemputan datang dari musuh UMNO saya terima kerana saya ingin lihat perubahan di Tawau. Kalau nak tunggu UMNO jemput, sampai bila pun saya tidak dapat lihat Tawau. Saya ini, walaupun masih ahli UMNO dan biasa menjadi Presiden UMNO, dianggap oleh kepimpinan UMNO sekarang sebagai musuh parti yang saya pimpin selama 22 tahun.
4. Ya lah. Saya tidak bersetuju dengan Dato Seri Najib, Presiden UMNO dan saya desak supaya dia disingkir. Tetapi dahulu saya juga cuba dijatuhkan oleh Tengku Razaleigh dan Musa Hitam. Tujuan mereka apabila mereka bertanding melawan saya dan Ghaffar ialah supaya saya tidak jadi Presiden lagi dan tidak jadi Perdana Menteri. Mereka berhajat menjatuhkan saya.
5. Saya tidak larang mereka berkempen di kalangan ahli-ahli UMNO dan ahli-ahli UMNO tidak dilarang oleh saya menghadiri kempen mereka. Bahagian-bahagian UMNO menjemput mereka untuk merasmikan mesyuarat Bahagian dan mereka berkempen semasa perasmian dan dimasa-masa lain.
6. Ada Bahagian yang mencalon Tengku Razaleigh dan Musa Hitam sebagai Presiden dan Timbalan Presiden. Saya tidak anggap mereka musuh saya dan perlu diambil tindakan. Tidak ada larangan terhadap pencalonan oleh mereka kerana ini memang cara demokrasi. Diwaktu ini calon-calon untuk Presiden Amerika Syarikat sibuk berkempen dimana-mana sahaja, kerana inilah cara demokrasi.
7. Tetapi sekarang Presiden UMNO belum pun dicabar secara rasmi sudah tidak benar saya berjumpa dengan pemimpin dan ahli-ahli UMNO. Ada unsur ugutan dalam arahan ini. Akan diambil tindakan, akan dibuang dari parti, akan disiasat. Masa depan dalam parti akan menjadi gelap. Tidak boleh jadi pemimpin lagi; tidak akan dijadikan calon lagi.
8. Dimasa yang sama sesiapa yang menegur Presiden dituduh cuba sabotaj, cuba menggugat demokrasi, menjatuhkan Presiden yang dipilih secara demokratik. Mereka yang membuat laporan polis kerana kehilangan duit Kerajaan disoal dan disiasat, dijadikan muflis. Dan seterusnya ditahan. Apabila dibebas oleh mahkamah ditangkap semula bawah undang-undang baru Sosma, undang-undang kononnya untuk terrorist pengganas.
9. Apakah orang yang melapor kepada polis berkenaan jenayah yang berlaku boleh dituduh jadi pengganas.
10. Sambil melaung-laungkan demokrasi peguam pihak yang dituduh pun disoal siasat. Peguam pun hendak ditakutkan.
11. Semua ini menakutkan rakyat, terutama ahli UMNO dan pemimpin kerdilnya. Mereka tahu ada perkara yang salah yang sedang berlaku. Tetapi mulut mereka ditutup. Telinga juga ditutup.
12. Kebebasan bersurat khabar yang kononnya didokong oleh Kerajaan ditutup kerana melapor berkenaan jenayah 1MDB dan lain-lain.
13. Imej negara ini sudah bertukar dari demokrasi kepada seakan-akan police state dimana undang-undang disalahguna untuk menakutkan rakyat. Kesalahan Kerajaan dan Perdana Menteri tidak boleh disebut pun. Perjumpaan rakyat dihalang dengan berbagai cara, dituduh rasis dan Kerajaan menggalakkan demonstrasi rasis diadakan kerana kononnya perhimpunan bersih yang bertujuan meminta Najib berhenti didakwa adalah rasis, satu percubaan orang Cina menjatuhkan Kerajaan Melayu.
14. Kerajaan menuduh sesiapa yang mendedah kesalahan Najib sebagai percubaan mengguling Kerajaan secara tidak demokratik.
15. Sebenarnya Kerajaanlah yang dengan mengugut bertindak terhadap rakyat, melarang ahli UMNO dari mendengar syarahan politik, Kerajaan sudah tidak demokratik lagi. Tidak ada demokrasi untuk diruntuh oleh rakyat, kerana demokrasi sudah pun dimusnah oleh Kerajaan.
16. Alhamdulillah, ada beribu orang Sabah yang tidak gentar dengan ugutan dan mereka hadir di perhimpunan di Tawau.
ENGLISH VERSION
TAWAU
1. I was in Tawau on October 5 at the invitation of a former opposition candidate.
2. Many members of UMNO in Sabah were not able to attend Bicara Negarawan which was held as it was organized by non-UMNO. They said the Secretary General of UMNO will be very angry if there are members or leaders who attend this gathering.
3. Actually I had not been to Tawau for 15 years. Therefore, even though the invitation had come from UMNO’s rival I accepted because I want to see the changes in Tawau. If I have to wait for UMNO’s invitation I do not know when I will be able to see Tawau. I, although still a member of UMNO and used to be the President of UMNO, am now considered by the UMNO’s present leadership as an enemy of the party that I used to lead for 22 years.
4. Yes. I do not agree with Dato Seri Najib, the President of UMNO and I insisted that he should be removed. But previously Tengku Razaleigh and Musa Hitam had also tried to remove me. Their intention when they stand against me and Ghaffar was that I did not become President again and also do not become Prime Minister. Their intention was to remove me.
5. I did not forbid them from campaigning among members of UMNO and UMNO members were not forbidden by me to attend their campaign. UMNO Divisions invited them to officiate their divisional meetings and they campaigned while officiating these programmes and at other times.
6. There are divisions that nominated Tengku Razaleigh and Musa Hitam as President and Vice President. I did not regard them as my enemies and to take action against. There were no restrictions on nominations by them because this is the way of democracy. At this time candidates for President of the United States are busy campaigning everywhere, because this is the way of democracy.
7. But now the President of UMNO has not even been officially challenged, already I am not allowed to meet leaders and members of UMNO. There is an element of intimidation in this directive. Action will be taken, will be sacked from the party, will be investigated. Their future in the party will be bleak. Cannot be a leader anymore, will not be nominated as a candidate again.
8. At the same time those who rebuke the President are accused of trying to sabotage, trying to undermine democracy, of overthrowing a democratically elected President. Those who make police reports on loss of government money are being questioned and investigated, forced into bankruptcy. And subsequently arrested. If acquitted by the court will be re-arrested under the new law Sosma, a law ostensibly for terrorists.
9. Can people who report to police on crimes committed be accused of being terrorists?
10. While there all these talks about democracy, lawyer of the accused was also investigated. Fear are even instilled into lawyers.
11. All these scare people, especially UMNO members and its insignificant leaders. They know there are things not right happening. But their mouths are shut. Their ears are also closed.
12. Freedom of press supposedly backed by the Government are abolished due to reports made about the crimes of 1MDB and others.
13. Image of the country had changed from a democracy to a quasi-police state in which laws are being abused to scare people. Errors of the Government and the Prime Minister cannot even be mentioned. Gathering of people is restricted by various means, accused of being racist, and the Government encouraged demonstrations with racist overtone supposedly because Bersih rally that aimed to ask Najib to resign is deemed racist, an attempt by the Chinese people to overthrow a Malay Government.
14. The Government has accused those who attempt to expose Najib’s wrong doings as undemocratic attempts to overthrow the Government.
15. Actually, it is the government that is threatening action against the people, prohibiting UMNO members from listening to political lectures, the government is no longer democratic. There is no democracy to be demolished by the people, for democracy is already destroyed by the Government.
16. Thanks to Allah, there are thousands of people in Sabah that are not daunted by threats and they were present at the rally in Tawau.
