Anwar and Kit Siang support cabinet decision on half-bridge

The Sun – 20/4/2006
KUALA LUMPUR: Former deputy prime minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and Opposition Leader Lim Kit Siang have thrown their support to the government's decision to scrap the half-bridge project to Singapore.
Anwar told a press conference today (April 19, 2006) he was doing so on a matter of principle, not because of his "conflict" with former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad. While admitting that Mahathir had "every right to express his view" over the decision by the current leadership to scrap the bridge project, Anwar said any responsible government would take the action to review any decision made by the previous administration that is "found to be uneconomic". He said no country should undertake a major project, affecting another country, unilaterally.
"I support the decision taken by (Prime Minister Datuk Seri) Abdullah (Ahmad Badawi) because any responsible leader, without exception, cannot proceed with a project affecting another country without that sort of arrangement being made. It does not make sense because, in the long-term, the survival, the economic, security and cultural interest of Singapore is intertwined with ours. In this modern period of time, we need wise, responsible leaders."
Speaking to reporters in his residence here, Anwar said he is willing to meet Abdullah to share his experiences in dealing with Singapore which he admitted was hard to negotiate with. Referring to the mid-1990s when the issue first developed, Anwar said "the first blunder" was committed by Mahathir when he assigned former Finance Minister Tun Daim Zainuddin to negotiate terms for a new bridge with Singapore without reference to the cabinet and without record from the Treasury.
"By the time I became Finance Minister, I had difficulty getting the records of the so-called negotiations that he (Daim) finally signed with then PM Lee Kuan Yew," he added.
Lim said the crooked bridge project, if built, would have been a symbol of shame and failure of Malaysia-Singapore bilateral relations as well as that of the Asean community He said Abdullah could, however, be faulted for not taking the decision earlier to cancel the project. Lim commended Abdullah for upholding dissent and diversity of opinion on the matter but censured Mahathir, saying he deserved to be criticised for stifling the media when he was in power. Lim said Mahathir's criticism of the current state of press freedom should however be looked into.
"Mahathir's claim that during his time as prime minister, there had been no phone calls from the Home Ministry to the local press to control and censor reporting is incredible, unless his claims that all those phone calls from the ministry to the local press when he was prime minister had been made without his knowledge or authority," said Lim. He asked whether Mahathir was prepared to agree to a public investigation on his government's handling of the press.
Source: The Sun | www.sun2surf.com