DR Mahathir Mohamad today blamed the Memali tragedy on the “Amanat Hadi”, espoused by PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang in 1981.

The Pakatan Harapan chairman said he welcomed the royal commission of inquiry into the 1985 Memali incident, which occurred during his time as prime minister but to “kick it off”, the probe should focus on the “Amanat Hadi”.

“He (Hadi) is closely connected to the incident. The amanat encouraged the fight against the government, calling it ‘jihad’. Those who die fighting will be martyrs,” he said in his blog chedet.cc today. 

The Memali tragedy in Baling, Kedah, saw a stand-off between the authorities and civilians, which cost lives on both sides, including that of policemen and a militant leader. 

“With that, on November 19, 1985, at 11am, the police were ambushed by those close to Ibrahim Libya’s house and a sergeant was killed while a constable was seriously injured,” he said, citing a speech by the acting prime minister at the Dewan Rakyat a day after the incident. 

“What was clear was the police officer was killed first, followed by Ibrahim’s people who were supposedly fighting a jihad (spiritual struggle).”

In his usual sarcastic tone, Dr Mahathir also said RCIs these days made conclusions before the panel members even met. 

“The government can profit from it. That is the terms of reference (ToR) in this age.”

He also said the government need not set up RCIs into other scandals, such as 1Malaysia Development Bhd. 

Other scandals include the RM2.6 billion in Prime Minister Najib Razak’s bank accounts; missing funds from KWAP (Retirement Fund Inc); national debts; the purchase of power plants above market value and losses incurred when they were sold cheap; the Wolf of Wall Street film which contained obscenities; and purchase of luxury assets in the US and UK with money allegedly stolen from 1MDB, as stated in the Department of Justice suits. 

“These are not crimes. Buying a pink diamond for one’s wife for RM120 million is because one loves one’s wife. 

“Is it wrong to love one’s wife? That is how you love your wife to the extent of stealing to show your endless love. 

“Yes, RCIs are not needed for all these. Didn’t the A-G (attorney-general) say it was all halal?”

Dr Mahathir said there were many more issues which needed an RCI, like the building of the Petronas Twin Towers, Putrajaya, Cyberjaya, PLUS highways, Kuala Lumpur International Airport, Westport and others. 

Those were mega-developments under his time as prime minister from 1981 to 2003. 

“All these need to be probed into by the leader of justice whose slogan is ‘Just do it’. Do whatever you are told. Don’t question.” – August 23, 2017.