Masidi’s statement hurts Dusuns – Kalakau

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KOTA KINABALU: United Sabah Dusun Association (USDA) deputy president Datuk Kalakau Untol has described Karanaan assemblyman Datuk Seri Panglima Masidi Manjun’s contention that the term ‘Rumpun Melayu’ can be the basis for the Kadazandusun to join Umno as both politically and culturally wrong.

“As deputy president of USDA, I call upon all USDA members to be wary and to reject anyone who attempts to erode our ethnic identity at the expense of our dignity,” he said.

“Firstly, we have the Sabah Mufti to suggest that Dusun Muslims should be Malaynised, (diMelayukan) which angered our Dusun members and he has yet to apologize over it.

“Now we have a Dusun leader from Ranau trying to use an anthropological terminology as a basis for Dusun, either Muslim or otherwise, to be labelled as Malay and therefore should join Umno. This is nothing more than an attempt to colonize our mentality,” Kalakau said.

“Nonetheless, it raises a pertinent question whether Datuk Masidi, being a former USDA leader and a well-respected Dusun at that, is being used by his Umno master to say something like that to the Dusun in order for some sinister agenda to be implemented,” Kalakau, who is Gerakan Perpaduan Sabah (GPS) chairman, said.

He said: “The current issue reminded those in USDA of a time when the late Datuk Mark Koding (also once a USDA president) was used by his party then to question the rationale behind the use of the Chinese language and characters on advertisement bills and signboards which drew the ire of the Chinese populace.

Although he (Koding) later admitted that he was trapped into raising the issue, the hurt and pain remained in the hearts of those who felt it for a long time.

“Likewise, we feel that Datuk Masidi may have been used by his Umno master to say what he did, but his statement has now gone  down into the hearts of every Dusun and it hurts us.

“To use an anthropological setting to classify the Dusun as Malay as a basis for them to become Umno members is totally wrong.

“Malays are Malays as are the Dayaks, Javanese, Suluks, Karens, Tausug for that matter and must be distinguished from each other.

“For Masidi’s attention, Dusuns are not Malays any more than the Afghans are Uzbeks although both is said to belong to the same Aryan stock,” Kalakau said.

“What Masidi is saying is simply to hoodwink the Dusuns into believing that it’s OK for them to be called Malay and join Umno.

“The Sabah Mufti has not apologized for his statement on Malaynising the Muslim-Dusuns, and now we have Datuk Masidi being used… to dupe the Dusuns into joining Umno,” he said.

“We have had enough. I urge Dusuns and all USDA members to think and decide in the next GE14 to reject all political leaders who are willing to sell their racial identity and dignity.

“We are all Malaysian — skin, blood and flesh. We have high hopes and aspirations being Malaysian in a multi-racial, multi-religious and multi-cultural Malaysia. Let us keep it that way,” he stressed.