A senior editor of an Umno-linked daily made a subtle call to Abdul Taib Mahmud today to step down in order to save Sarawak BN, telling him to heed the lesson the Terengganu BN learnt in 1999.

NONE That year, said Malay-language daily Utusan Malaysia ’s senior editor Zaini Hassan ( right ), grumblings against the Terengganu menteri besar of 25 years - Wan Mokhtar Ahmad - had come to such an extent that BN was warned it would collapse if Wan Mokhtar led the coalition in the upcoming 10th general election.

Despite the spectre being a source of nightmares for Wan Mokhtar and other Umno and BN figures, the warnings went unheeded.

The fears became a reality when PAS toppled Wan Mokhtar’s government and took over Terengganu, with its president Abdul Hadi Awang at the helm.

“Will the same happen in Sarawak?” Zaini asked.

He pointed out that Taib had just announced he would be leading BN in the next state elections “although it has been almost 30 years since he first became chief minister”.

NONE Noting that Dr Mahathir Mohamad had stepped down after being premier for 22 years, Zaini said comparable pressure for MIC president S Samy Vellu had also reached a critical level.

He also pointed out that if Taib's years in the federal as well as the Sarawak cabinets were taken into consideration, Taib would have served for 47 years.

It’s not only Sarawakians who want Taib ( left ) to step down, but “the ordinary people who sit atop as well as under the fence” in both East and West Malaysia, said Zaini.

“In the situation of Sarawak, there are no BN leaders courageous enough to openly call for Taib to retire from politics. Taib is no ordinary person in terms of influence and power (and) has had almost 30 years to strengthen his position.

utusan kisah wan mokhtar taib mahmud samakah 290910 “But the ordinary people (of Sarawak) have seen a lot of changes of leadership in other states and at the federal level in the past three decades and they must be asking - when will the winds of change blow in their state?” Zaini asked further.

“Should Taib step down? What justification is there for him to continue leading the largest state in Malaysia? Such a veteran leader abide by the logic and dynamics of current politics that point towards a new (politics).

“As folks in the kampung put it, no one can hold up the sky (or, nobody lives forever). If such a folk saying is not understandable, the English would say: Nobody is indispensable.”