KOTA KINABALU: Thirty-three years after being detained for 26 months under the now-repealed Internal Security Act (ISA), Datuk Seri Dr Jeffrey Kitingan insists there was never a plot for Sabah to secede from Malaysia.
Kitingan claimed that his detention from May 13, 1991 under the ISA was politically motivated by the federal government led by Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad to stop the then-Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) government from pursuing Sabah rights under the 20-point safeguards outlined in the Malaysia Agreement 1963.
"It was a move to silence me," said Kitingan during the forum "Dr Jeffrey Kitingan's 33rd ISA detention anniversary" hosted by Sabah Way Forward and Kupikupifm Sabah, moderated by journalist Philip Golingai.
Kitingan, who is now Sabah STAR president and Sabah Deputy Chief Minister I, said that Dr Mahathir never accepted PBS, led by his brother Tan Sri Joseph Pairin Kitingan, who won in the 1985 state election.
Pairin's party had toppled the Berjaya-led state government under Tan Sri Harris Salleh, who was seen to be a close ally of Dr Mahathir.
Kitingan said that he raised the 20-point safeguards and this was interpreted by the federal government as a move to secede from Malaysia.
"Linking me to the 20 points to secede Sabah is totally wrong," said Jeffrey, who was among seven people arrested for such the said plot.
"The Prime Minister (Dr Mahathir) called me right before the arrest. (He said) 'Jeff, don't teach the people what they don't know'," he claimed.
Kitingan, who was also then-Yayasan Sabah director, said that the federal government placed many obstacles in front of the state government and even set up a new federal development office to block the state from getting funds.
"I thought this was unfair. So I raised a question on Jan 1, 1987 on how Kuala Lumpur was treating the Sabah government and I asked why Sabah was treated like a colony.
"Why didn't they respect the 20 points? That was the beginning," he said, explaining that relations with the federal government worsened when PBS pulled out of Barisan Nasional midway through the 1990 General Election.
(On pulling out, PBS aligned itself with the then national opposition Gagasan Rakyat led by Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah).
"They used it as a reason to look at me as a troublemaker because at the time, no one remembered the 20 points and MA63 because all these were hidden," said Jeffrey, who was released from ISA detention in Kamunting in December 1994.
During the hour-long forum, Jeffrey insisted PBS government was not involved or aware of such a plot.
"We just showed Kuala Lumpur we were dissatisfied. When we did that, the federal government did not like it," he said.
However, Kitingan said that he does not hold any enmity towards Dr Mahathir.
"I have no problem with Mahathir... I forgive him. I don't keep anything because if you tie yourself to the past, you will never move forward.
"That's how I look at people, even if they do bad things to me.
"I don't take revenge or keep grudges.I let go, I move on," he said.
Recollecting the days before his arrest, Kitingan said that he was the target of a corruption probe first before they used the ISA.
He said prior to his arrest, a large number of policemen turned up at a Kaamatan festival in Tambunan with a letter ordering him to turn up at the police station on May 13, 1991.
"When I got out of detention... I met Dr Mahathir and he apologised," said Kitingan.
He said nightmares about his detention still haunt him and he gets very emotional just thinking about how he was betrayed.
Jeffrey also denied that he had fled the country when the police were searching for him before his arrest.
"I had to move from place to place. I was followed to my house and I had to escape by pretending to be a driver.
"I finally surrendered not because I wanted to but because I thought it was not right for them to hunt me," he added.
"I do not regret anything. I was prepared to die for my country.
"They took my freedom. They took everything from me. But I know I was right. I am glad I could do something for Sabah." he said.
