BY: DATO’ SERI MOHAMED AZMIN ALI
It is most unfortunate that I have been stopped from entering this beautiful state and being with you today. Your Chief Minister has demanded that I should write in to appeal. But why should I be so slavish to Adenan Satem?
After all, it is you, the Sarawakian people that I want to see.
I travelled to Sarawak in order to give support to our KEADILAN candidates in their final hours of this election campaign, to join hands and drink in the spirit of the courage and resolve of the Sarawakian people and to stand shoulder to shoulder with your leaders and assemblymen like Baru Bian, See Chee How, and Ali Biju as well as the others who are also working so hard to be your representatives.
I was really gearing up the whole of last night, sleepless and very excited to help the campaign for our candidates who are indeed an absolute inspiration to all Malaysians, particularly so, to KEADILAN, myself and Sarawakians.
They are the peoples’ heroes. They are my heroes.
You are blessed with candidates who are passionate and totally committed to the cause of Sarawakians. They have struggled for decades to fight for a better Sarawak, defending the peoples’ rights, their ancestral rights to the land of Sarawak, working tirelessly on the ground with all the different communities. This is the real meaning of standing up for the rights of Sarawak, which, in case anyone has forgotten, is a founding member of the Federation of Malaysia.
While no one is questioning the constitutional basis of the federation, there is no doubt that issues of autonomy for Sarawak are of genuine concern. In fact, we in KEADILAN ever since our inception have fought for genuine autonomy for Sarawak.
We fervently believe that the people of Sarawak must be given whatever that is rightly due to them.
For too long, with the connivance of BN leaders from the Peninsula, the Sarawak BN leaders have been bleeding the people dry, short-changing them in terms of their welfare and socio-economic development.
As if the poverty and the high cost of living is not bad enough to oppress the people of Sarawak, the BN government, backed by 25 Sarawak BN Members of Parliament has seen it fit to pass the GST causing even further hardship and suffering for the people.
For decades, the people of Sarawak have also been denied the billions of ringgit of oil royalty rightly due to them. For how long are Sarawakians prepared to be humiliated by Prime Minister Najib who has publicly declared in front of your Chief Minister that oil royalty is not a priority?
Adenan Satem can place all the barriers and all the hurdles to prevent me from entering Sarawak but he will not be able to prevent the winds of change from sweeping across the land of the Kenyalang, brought on by the passion and the will of the people of Sarawak and their leaders.
My dear Sarawakians,
The time is right. The future of Sarawak is in your hands. Tomorrow is polling day. Seize the moment, make that difference and victory is yours.
DATO’ SERI MOHAMED AZMIN ALI