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The incident that changed Sabah

Rebel priest, Benjamin Basintal, who stood up for social
justice once blogged: 'Let us fix a collapsing Malaysia
once and for all and let's begin now.'
KOTA KINABALU: Benjamin Basintal died last month. Few will remember that name unless they happened to live in Sabah in 1990.
It was perhaps typical that the daily newspapers with their jingoisms and fawning, sloppy journalism ignored the death of the former Catholic priest-turned-teacher from organ failure at the age of 59.
A bit odd because Benjamin, then a young priest, was the man at the centre of a curious event that was credited and blamed, depending on which side you are on, for the near landslide victory of the opposition Parti Bersatu Sabah government in the 1990 elections.
This was before the state was perversely opened to hundreds of thousands of immigrants, especially Muslims, who were swiftly granted citizenship in an alleged scheme to re-engineer the Christian-majority state into the Muslim one which it has since become.
On July 16, 1990, a feisty local tabloid, Borneo Mail, published an intriguing report on its front page immortally titled: ‘Priest missing – linked to secession plot?’. It appeared on the morning of the state election.
The paper, quoting reliable sources, reported that the priest was believed to have been detained under the ISA in connection with a plot to take Sabah out of Malaysia. It also reported that several other priests were being sought by police for questioning.
Syed Othman Syed Ali, the state police chief at the time, immediately ordered an investigation of the Borneo Mail and its journalists under both the Internal Security Act and the Printing Presses and Publications Act for the “inflammatory” nature of the report.
The article was written by then Borneo Mail chief editor Pung Chen Choon. He became the first journalist in the country to be charged under the Printing Presses and Publications Act which carries a penalty of three years jail or a fine of RM20,000 or both.
The case was heard in court over the following two years with several high-profile witnesses called and widely reported by both the local and national media. But then another strange thing happened; it fizzled out and was quietly shelved as though the outcome was too frightening to pursue.
Pung was defended by Chong Kah Kiat who went on to become Sabah chief minister. Chong was assisted by lawyers Richard Barnes, who is now linked to out-going Sabah Chief Minister Musa Aman, and Gerard Math Lee Min. Current Attorney-General of Malaysia Abdul Gani Patail, then a Senior Federal Counsel, led the prosecution.
KL was paranoid
Some argue that while the Borneo Mail report was speculative it was not far from the truth. Many say that federal authorities were in a heightened state of paranoia about a plot to take Sabah out of Malaysia as they are aware that there has always been nationalistic undercurrents in the state in respect to the peninsula.
Benjamin’s family have always maintained that the former priest was indeed hounded and was being sought by the police along with others he associated with. Church authorities later acknowledged he had been forewarned to “go on leave”.
His elder brother Francis said in a recent interview that his brother was known to campaign for justice for the poor and forgotten and this had put him at odds with the authorities.
But what was he to do? He was a priest and he saw many of them (his parishioners) living in hardship and in distressing circumstance in kampungs in the interior of Sabah.
“Many of his parishioners and the people in the kampungs used to warn him that there were certain men in shiny black shoes asking questions about him.
“They were protective of him and told him not to drive his old and battered vehicle as it was well known to the men who came in Proton Iswara’s with Wilayah (peninsula) number plates.
“These people were going in and out of the kampungs and town in Membakut and Kg Bawan, chit chatting with the people and asking about my brother,” said Francis.
How he was allowed to leave Sabah without the authorities knowing, remains a mystery. According to his brother, Benjamin caught a flight to Kuala Lumpur from the Kota Kinabalu International Airport and from there made his way to the United States after being told to take leave by his superiors in the church.
This was a period, it must be remembered, when Sabahans were defiant and proud about their independence and would denounce Malayan politicians as greedy and domineering. They were confident of their harmony and unity and ability to see off any challenge hurled at them.
The report in the Borneo Mail that Benjamin had gone missing relegated the Barisan Nasional to a footnote in the election and the Christian-dominated PBS emerged victorious much to the fury of then PBS-hating prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad and his Umno-led BN coalition government in Kuala Lumpur.
Rare victory
Mahathir had himself only just survived a bitter political battle during the nasty campaign period against his former colleague Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah and his Semangat 46 faction of Umno.
Though unsurprising, the slap-down delivered by voters in the state resulted in Mahathir unleashing a series of outrageous, ham-fisted measures that eventually brought Sabahans to their knees and toppled the PBS state government four years later.
But Benjamin’s fight for justice for his people was a rare victory for the opposition in a time known as Mahathir’s era. The people of Sabah along with those in Kelantan had shown that they were unafraid to say “enough” and “no” to bad governance and misrule.
Benjamin, a young man then, influenced by liberation theology and eager to promote equality along with other reform-minded individuals, encouraged his parishioners and others to question both state and national leaders and what they were delivering.
He was then the rector of a church in Beaufort, a quiet provincial town about 90 kilometres south of here. He was not reticent about speaking his mind, much to the discomfort of his superiors in the Catholic church as well as politicians who sought him out.
He continued to speak his mind after he returned from the US with a degree in journalism and political science. He left the priesthood shortly after and devoted himself to teaching till his death on March 3.
In the 2008 general election he stood as an independent candidate against the Barisan Nasional’s Anifah Aman in Kimanis after he saw that the younger brother of the chief minister Musa Aman was ineffectual in improving the quality of life of the people in his constituency. As expected, he lost, polling just 205 votes but still left his mark.
“Anifah was scared of his outspokenness. He felt threatened by Benjamin’s knowledge and grasp of issues. My brother would tell me he had been approached and told by people close to Anifah not to write or say such things,” said Francis.
In several musings made both in the newspapers and in blog postings Benjamin made in 2008, he spoke of the divisiveness and greed within his own community.
The majority of Kadazans, Dusuns, Muruts and Rungus (KDRM), he lamented in one posting, don’t feel they are united as one community. “Brother (is) fighting against brother. They see people who are greedy for positions to a point where they have to fight their own fellow brothers to get the social status and positions. ”
Pairin ‘motivated by greed’
He was also unabashed about criticising the community’s revered Huguan Siou Joseph Pairin Kitingan who he charged was not capable of leading anybody as he was “motivated by greed and positions … instead of being an agent and force of unity of the KDMR he is a destroyer of that unity and force”.
Benjamin urged his parishioners to free themselves and not be mere followers, saying: “Ducks are wonderful birds but I prefer the eagle as a symbol. Ducks are guided by sounds and influenced by immediate noises and tend to be followers most of the time. Be like the eagle. Be independent-minded, fly high and determine your own destiny.”
“If our actions do not promote justice and if we are not involved in changing the unjust system of society our work will be destitute of positive effects, that is, they are in vain and useless.
“This is the age of participation and the highest level of participation in transforming society is that of the promotion of social justice wherein the poor and oppressed are genuinely liberated from the cycle of economic and social poverty.”
The way Benjamin saw it, Sabah with its abundant natural resources on one side and many of its people abjectly poor on the other side was a gapping wound. The state’s wealth that could help lift them out of the poverty trap was instead paying for vanity projects elsewhere in Malaysia and this was an affront to him.
“Let us fix a collapsing Malaysia once and for all and let’s begin now,” he once said in a blog posting.
The first time Benjamin disappeared, he influenced an election. His passing may do just that again if only people pause to remember what he stood for – social justice!

37 comments:

  1. RIP TRUE SABAH PATRIOT!

    The solution in not in Malaysia.

    But outside like Brunei and Singapore!

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  2. Rest in peace gundohing Benjamin.. .We salute your good deeds. RIP

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  3. bila ada projek pembangunan di kawasan pedalaman, pembangkang juga yang bantah.. siap menghasut rakyat kononnya berlaku rampasan tanah, rasuah dan sebagainya.. bila projek gagal dan nasib penduduk kampung kekal tidak berubah,, akhirnya yang disalahkan kerajaan.. kenapa tidak salahkan pembangkang??

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. pembangunan seperti apa yang dibantah pembangkang..??..sila tolong beri penjelasan dan beri satu contoh pembangunan yang dibantah oleh pembangkang untuk rakyat pedalaman dan sila nyatakan di mana lokasi tersebut...jika kerajaan memang gagal untuk memberikan pembangunan yang sepatutnya sila jangan alihkan kegagalan itu ke bahu pembangkang yang tiada kuasa membatalkan projek pembangunan...

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  4. pembangkang yang awal2 lagi sudah tunjukkan sikap tamak mereka (mengenai pembahagian kerusi), bolehkah diangkat sebagai pemimpin negara untuk "menyelamatkan" negara ini??? skandal pasir di selangor, pembalakan di Kedah, rampasan tanah di kelantan dan diskriminasi di Pulau Pinang.. apa jaminan malaysia akan selamat dan maju dibawah pembangkang??

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    Replies
    1. sila jangan lihat dulu ke arah pembangkang dari segi ketamakan agihan kerusi...jika betul2 ingin lihat siapa sebenarnya yang tamak sila lihat berapa kerusi umno bolot di sabah...di bawah lambang dacing kuno itu umno telah memperlihatkan sikap tamak sebenar dalam agihan kerusi apabila membolot lebih separuh kerusi DUN yang dipertandingkan walhal dalam be end itu ada berapa parti yang menjadi rakan komponen...
      di sini kita melihat umno bukan sahaja memperlihatkan sikap tamaknya yang paling haloba didunia politik Sabah tetapi juga telah memperlihatkan sifat kuku besinya yang paling memalukan di dunia kerana merasakan bahawa merekalah yang paling adil dalam negara ini dalam pengagihan kerusi...
      kuman diseberang laut china selatan amat terang sekali dilihat oleh pemimpin dan penyokong be end tapi kelemahan sebesar gunung kinabalu di negeri borneo sendiri tidak dapat dilihat..heran--->>hutan sabah-sarawak sudah banyak gondol dan untuk menutupnya, implan berupa ladang kelapa sawit dilakukan untuk mengelak kesannya daripada dilihat..dan ironinya tanah itu merupakan rampasan daripada tanah rezab NCR penduduk miskin yang tiada kekuatan...memalukan sahaja..

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    2. Pembangkang dan BN adalah sama, masing-masing gilakan kuasa. Yang penting, jangan salah gunakan kuasanya.

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  5. harap apabila tiba masa pilihanraya ini tidak ada pihak yang sengaja memainkan isu agama untuk memancing undi..

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ini adalah sebgai peringtn kpd generasi masa kini thdap ketidakadilan yg dilakkukan oleh phak yg x bertanggungjawab kpd golongan yg lemah..Kita ambil ini sbg pedoman bha...

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    2. Isu sensitif seperti agama tidak harus diungkit.

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  6. kebebasan beragama tidak harus menjadi isu di Sabah..

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sejak dari dulu, tolak ansur dan persefahaman antara rakyat berbeza agama di Sabah sudah terserlah.tidak wujud isu2 sensitif agama.

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  7. hak kebebasan beragama di negeri ini seharusnya sentiasa dipelihara dengan semua kaum dan penganut agama masing-masing bebas mengamal serta menjalankan aktiviti keagamaan dengan sewajarnya..

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Tiada paksaan terhadap seseorang untuk menganut sesuatu agama.Jadi, tidak sepatutnya timbul isu2 yang melibatkan perkara ini.

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  8. janganlah kita dengan senangnya mahu menukar kerajaan kerana BN sudah memerintah sejak 50 tahun.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Apa yang rakyat nikmati selepas BN memerintah dalam 50 tahun ini?

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  9. Rakyat perlu melihat banyak negara yang sudah merdeka lebih awal tetapi masih mundur seperti Bangladesh, Laos, Pakistan dan negara lain

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    Replies
    1. Pembangunan sesebuah negara bergantung pada pentadbiran pemimpinnya.syukur dengan apa yang sudah kita rasai sekarang berbanding negara mundur seperti Bangladesh, Laos dan lain2 negara.Salah satu juga faktor kemunduran mereka kerana sering berlaku pergaduhan dan pertelingkahan sesama kaum.Mudah-mudahan perpaduan berbagai kaum di negara ni akan terus berkekalan.

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  10. pakatan pembangkang kini semakin ketandusan modal untuk menyerang Barisan Nasional (BN) dan hanya bersandarkan "fitnah dan pembohongan" bagi meraih sokongan rakyat menjelang pilihan raya umum akan datang.

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    Replies
    1. Fitnah dan pembohongan pasti akan terdedah akhirnya. Semua pemimpin parti perlu beringat agar tidak melakukan politik kotor semata-mata untuk mendapat sokongan rakyat.

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    2. Masing-masing harus memainkan peranan dengan baik agar tidak salah gunakan kuasa.

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  11. rakyat terutama di Sabah tidak mudah terpedaya dengan taktik kotor pembangkang, sebaliknya menyokong kerajaan BN pimpinan Perdana Menteri Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak yang terbukti kemampuannya untuk membangunkan negara ini.

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  12. Rakyat Sabah tahu menilai kerajaan yang boleh membawa pembangunan untuk rakyat.

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  13. Ada di kalangan pemimpin pembangkang yang pernah memegang jawatan timbalan perdana menteri, timbalan ketua menteri atau menteri...apa yang mereka buat untuk rakyat?

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    Replies
    1. Rakyat boleh menilai sendiri setiap peranan dan sumbangan yang telah diberikan oleh pemimpin2 yang berkenaan.

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  14. "Pemimpin pembangkang kata tiada apa-apa pembangunan di Sabah di bawah kerajaan BN. Ini satu pembohongan untuk mengelirukan pemikiran rakyat. Apakah mereka tidak sedar jalan raya yang digunakan oleh pemimpin pembangkang pun adalah hasil usaha kerajaan BN.

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  15. Sabah is changing all the time, just see around.

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  16. If we have problems, the opposition has even more problems. If I say the BN has no problems, that’s not right.

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  17. Najib expressed confidence that Johor BN would be returned to power with a thumping victory, securing more seats than in the 2008 general election.

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    Replies
    1. Itu juga terpulang sama ada rakyat memberi peluang kepadanya.

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  18. Najib said he and many others knew the opposition aimed to turn Johor into a “battle ground” just like what they did in Perak and Penang in the last election.

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  19. the prime minister said he had full confidence in the “Johor Way” and in the hardwork of the Johor BN election machinery, which would retain Johor as BN’s bastion.

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  20. All political parties, their campaigners and supporters as well as voters must ensure that the 13th general election (GE13) will be peaceful and prove to the world that Malaysia is a mature democracy

    ReplyDelete
  21. candidates from across the political divide must be able to exercise maturity when campaigning for the 13th general election and ensure that it is free from violence

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  22. the police must step up surveillance and inspection of ceramah locations to prevent a recurrence of the recent incident where an improvised explosive device exploded near a ceramah site, injuring a party worker and supporter.

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  23. voters should not be deterred to vote because of some isolated incidents that had marred the election campaign.

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  24. Winning the election and forming the government was one thing but what was even more crucial was that the people wanted to see elected representatives of integrity and who could live up to the expectations and trust of the people besides ensuring racial integration and unity

    ReplyDelete

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