A crackdown against Sabah activists who have threatened secession if Putrajaya does not correct alleged injustices in the state appears imminent, after Home Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi today confirmed an impending action.

 

"Sure, we have identified them. You just wait, we will announce," he told journalists in Kuala Lumpur today.

 

Zahid said this when asked about Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin's Merdeka eve statement in Sabah that those suggesting secession cannot be “tolerated” and must be acted against.

Several Sabah activists, including Bingkor assemblyperson Jeffrey Gapari Kitingan ( left ), have in recent years put pressure on Putrjaya to address what they say is unfair treatment against the state.

However, they have been careful not to call for outright seccession but said this could be an option if Putrajaya continued to ignore their plight.

On another matter, Zahid dismissed claims by Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim that the  slew of sedition prosecution cases of late and and mass arrests in Penang were a repeat of the 1987 Operasi Lalang.

He also shot down DAP national adviser Lim Kit Siang's claim that more sedition charges would follow.

"Kit Siang always speculates. For me, when an action is taken, it is done after investigation and is not based on speculation," Zahid said.

He added the comparison to Operasi Lalang was only an attempt to gain political mileage.

Pressed as to whether more people would be charged with sedition soon, Zahid sidestepped the question and turned on journalists, asking: "How do I know? Why do you give so much credit to Lim Kit Siang? Where are you from?"

He said he welcomed people airing their views, and added, “but they should not be touching on sensitive issues”.

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