Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamed has denied claims that his administration campaigned to harm Singapore’s economy by boycotting the island-state’s shipping port.
“What Malaysia and Indonesia did was not sabotage but competition. In the past both countries’ goods were marketed through Singapore because its port could be used for big ships.
“Realising that shipping companies could contribute to the economy, so both countries decided to develop their own ports to reap more benefits from each other’s import-export industry,” Dr Mahathir said today.
In a letter written to Utusan Malaysia today, the former prime minister said that he was “clarifying” his Mingguan Malaysia interview last Sunday.
In the interview, Dr Mahathir accused Singapore of exploiting Malaysia and Indonesia for its own economic benefits.
He then said Singapore’s claims about Malaysia and Indonesia’s were baseless, because Singapore depended on their resources as(Singapore) had “nothing.”
“If we want to build our own ports with our own resources, why can’t we? It is our right, we are not taking away their riches,” he was quoted in his weekend edition interview.
Dr Mahathir repeated his stand today, stressing earlier points highlighted in the interview.
“Do free and independent countries have to maintain our coloniser’s system where Singapore remains the main port in South East Asia? What is wrong with countries wanting to develop their own economy through the port industry? Now is this a threat to Singapore?” he said today.
The country’s longest-serving PM has admitted that Malaysia’s growth was slower compared with Singapore’s, but alleged it was due to Putrajaya ensuring all races had slices of the country’s economic pie.
Dr Mahathir in his interview suggested the island republic was less into “balance of wealth” among races, letting minorities like Malays trail Chinese.
This, Dr Mahathir feels, gave Singapore its edge over Malaysia. Singapore helped form Malaysia in 1963 but was asked to leave two years.
The former PM has been highly critical of Singapore over the past recent weeks.
Two weeks ago he claimed that Malaysia was more democratic, and argued Singapore’s “disciplined” image was at the expense of its citizens’ freedoms.
Malaysia on the hand he argued was more “democratic” and did not use extreme measures to govern.
In June last year, Dr Mahathir told a rally of Malay NGOs that Malays in Malaysia risked becoming marginalised like their Singapore counterparts because of political division.
The former prime minister said: “If we do not think deeply about the future of our community then there is a possibility that we can become [like] the Singaporean Malays and have no power.”
His remarks were heavily criticised by Singapore Berita Harian readers, who insist Singaporean Malays are not marginalised, and that their rights were fully protected.
