MALACCA: They may be in their 50s, 60s and 70s but a group of retired army commandos who had risked their lives in the war against the communists, yesterday issued a challenge to Pas deputy president Mohamad Sabu for a face-to-face meeting.
Led by retired warrant officer Hussin Mahbeb, 62, the group said it wanted Mohamad, or better known as Mat Sabu, to show proof that the communists who killed the policemen at the Bukit Kepong police station were freedom fighters.
"We want to hear it from Mat Sabu's own mouth why he felt that the communists were heroes in fighting for the country's independence.
"I stepped on a booby trap placed by the communists during an operation in Kedah and the heel of my right foot was crushed. I didn't regret it as I was defending our country.
"But I am furious that Mat Sabu has labelled the communists as heroes, and by virtue of that, he regards us as the bad people. My fellow comrades-in-arms want to meet him and hear his side of the story, that is, if he dares to meet us," he said.
Former warrant officer Damanhuri Husin, 55, who lost his right leg after stepping on a booby trap in Bancan Teret Susu at the Malaysia-Thailand border in 1976, said Mat Sabu appeared to have belittled their contribution and sacrifices.
"A bullet also went through my right shoulder during an operation at the border but we continued to fight.
"Many were injured and many gave their lives to protect the country from the communists. We are saddened by the comments made by someone who did not know the struggles we faced."
Corporal Yaacob Hassan, 60, who lost his right hand, said Mat Sabu was a young boy when the communists tried to take over the country and did not know what they had gone through.
"He was talking without thinking. He had hurt the feelings of the members of the country's security forces and their families."
No comments:
Post a Comment