Pursue Batu Puteh Compensation Don T Just Probe Mahathir Govt Told

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Veteran newsman A Kadir Jasin said merely lodging police reports with the aim to put ex-prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad behind bars ‘won’t solve much’.
PETALING JAYA: A veteran newsman has urged the government to consider securing compensation for Batu Puteh by leveraging Malaysia’s good relationship with Singapore, rather than focussing solely on probing former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
In a Facebook post, A Kadir Jasin said that seeking a diplomatic resolution would be more beneficial for Malaysia, especially in light of the complex historical and legal context surrounding the sovereignty of Batu Puteh.
“Don’t just stop at attempting to ‘punish’ Mahathir. Beyond that, the Madani government should focus on strengthening ties with Singapore to secure alternative forms of compensation or cooperation.”
He also referred to a key document, a letter from the acting secretary of the Johor government to the British colonial secretary, dated Sept 21, 1953, in which Johor stated it did not claim ownership of Batu Puteh.
“If we understand the contents of the letter from the Johor government then we must accept the reality that we never owned Batu Puteh (or Pedra Branca in Portuguese).”
Kadir added that merely lodging police reports to put Mahathir behind bars “wont solve much”.
“I don’t think he’d have an issue being investigated. If anything, he has always welcomed investigations to set the record straight,” he added.
Kadir was commenting on the now declassified royal commission of inquiry (RCI) report on Batu Puteh, Middle Rocks and South Ledge which recommended criminal investigations be initiated against the former prime minister for cheating.
Among the un-redacted recommendations was that the RCI’s secretary file a police report against Mahathir to make way for a criminal investigation under Sections 415(b) and 418 of the Penal Code.
The report said Mahathir had likely acted deliberately to influence the Cabinet to discontinue the applications to review and interpret the International Court of Justice’s decision on the matter despite international consultants saying there was a likelihood of success.
By deciding not to pursue both applications, Mahathir caused wrongful loss to the government, the report read.
However, two members of the commission – retired apex court judge Zainun Ali and legal expert Faridah Jalil – said Mahathir’s decision not to proceed with the applications was a “mere dereliction of duty” and did not amount to a criminal offence. -FMT

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