Mahathir seeks support in Sabah

Mahathir seeks support in Sabah

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP): Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad urged
Malaysians on Friday to support his ruling coalition, saying it
had brought prosperity and ensured equal opportunities for all
races.

Mahathir, on a two-day visit to the eastern timber-rich state
of Sabah, said cooperation between various parties in the
National Front coalition had ensured that the interests of all
races were protected.

Mahathir, quoted by the official Bernama news agency, was
speaking at a meet-the-people session during a nationwide tour to
bolster political support.

He said that under Malaysia's multi-ethnic society no majority
community tried to monopolize everything or oppress the minority
group.

"This is how the coalition takes up the cause of all the races
and of all the religions," said Mahathir, prime minister for the
past 18 years.

Mahathir, 73, is president of the United Malays National
Organization (UMNO), the dominant party in the National Front
coalition that has ruled since independence in 1957.

Malays make up 54 percent of the 22 million population. The
remainder are Chinese, Indians and indigenous people.

Besides UMNO which represents the Malay majority, the National
Front's other senior partners are the Malaysian Chinese
Association and the Malaysian Indian Congress.

Mahathir said a prosperous and riot-free Malaysia would not
suffice until there was full cooperation among the various races
in all fields.

"We can't afford to be fragmented. We must uphold effective
co-existence through the coalition," he said.

He was speaking a day after the 30th anniversary of race riots
against the ethnic Chinese population in which up to 200 people
died.

Mahathir said teamwork between the various ethnic-based
parties in the ruling coalition had prompted opposition parties
to imitate such an alliance.

The political pact that the opposition Parti Islam Semalaysia
and the Democratic Action Party (DAP) had established was only a
temporary arrangement to secure victory in the next general
election, he said.

Mahathir has attacked the concept of a "Malaysian Malaysia"
promoted by the DAP. This calls for the creation of a new form of
politics based on justice, freedom, democracy and good
governance.