Kota Kinabalu: Former State Secretary under the Mustapha-led Usno State Government, Tan Sri Richard Lind, passed away peacefully in his house in Signal Hill, Saturday. He would have been 99 in August. Lind was among the few who was involved in almost all the major events that shaped Sabah’s history, from since the Chartered Company days, the Japanese occupation, the post-war reconstruction, the Merdeka process and after independence through the formation of Malaysia. He continued to stay relevant even after retiring from the civil service through his involvement in major corporations. In his earlier years. Top: The original plaque with words ‘Kerajaan Malaysia Jamin” and its replacement without the words until lately (below).
He was a prolific writer, having a biography under his belt called “My Sabah”, and regularly contributed articles to the Daily Express. They were mainly about his personal experiences and viewpoints concerning the thing that was closest to his heart – Sabah and Malaysia. “I feel that it is only right for me to put these experiences into writing to serve as a reminder of the difficult paths that the people of Sabah went through before attaining independence and becoming what we are today,” he once said. Lind is assured of his place in history in Malaysia’s nation-building process as he played a crucial role in convincing the interior natives to support the formation of Malaysia. He achieved this through getting their feedback which was conveyed to first appointed Chief Minister Donald (later Tun Fuad) Stephens. The result was the erection of the Batu Sumpah (Oath Stone) in Keningau a year after independence through the formation of Malaysia on 16.9.1963. The interior natives led by respected Dusun leader Sedomon had continued with their opposition even after the proclamation. Stephens despatched Lind who was then District Officer of Keningau to find out what can be done to win their support for the merger. He found out that their worries mainly pertained to freedom of religion despite Islam being the official religion, State jurisdiction over lands and upholding native adat. Although these core demands were contained in the 20 Points safeguards, the natives said they do not trust whatever was agreed in the Malaysia Agreement (MA63) as it was written on paper and wanted it cast in stone. Following this, Stephens obtain consent from the British Government to proceed with the erection of the Oath Stone with these three demands stated clearly.
The stone was retrieved from a tributary of the Pegalan river and a Singapore company was commissioned to do the plaque listing these demands with the words “Kerajaan Malaysia Jamin (Malaysian Government Guarantees” right at the very top. Its unveiling on 31.8.1964 to coincide with the original date of the formation of Malaysia on 31.8.1963 was witnessed by the then Agong and federal ministers. It was consecrated by three senior bobohizans (priests and priestesses) which involved the sacrifice of chicken. However, in the mid-1980s, the plaque went missing during a road expansion at the site where it was erected and its replacement was found to have omitted the key words “Kerajaan Malaysia Jamin”. This became an issue with quarters suspecting that whoever wanted the plaque removed had mischievous intent. The plaque resurfaced decades later when an anonymous person surrendered it to Star President Datuk Dr Jeffrey Kitingan, who in turn handed it over to the authorities. Then Law Minister Datuk Nazri ordered that the plaque bearing the original words must be reinstated as these were federal government guarantees. Lind was among those who was required by the police to authenticate whether it was the original plaque. He confirmed that it was. The plaque with the omitted words was finally restored in a special ceremony several years back. 
He informed Razak that he would convey the message to Mustapha in London. Mustapha duly flew to KL for discussions on the matter. "Several months later, Mustapha flew from London and showed up in Kota Kinabalu wanting to know whether I knew of any documents that needed his attention as Razak was becoming impatient. "I told him i believe I knew what he was talking about and why I did not bring it to his attention. I said to him that he should have consulted me about the matter and briefed him on the implications. "Mustapha was taken aback after my explanation but told me he had already given his word to Razak. He used a Malay proverb that he could not take back what had left his mouth," Lind said. It was the Continental Shelf Act. On another occasion just before the 1975 State election, he was called to London where Mustapha asked him to put up for sale in the newspapers there his property of several rolling acres in order to fight the newly-set up Parti Berjaya. "The next day he called me inquiring if a certain sale that was accompanied with a photograph he had seen in a paper could be bought cheaper once he had sold his as it looked very nice. "I told him, 'but Tun that is your property!'"
Lind of Oath Stone fame passes away at 98
Daily Express
Daily Express Online (Malaysia) is Sabah's top-ranked & most viewed English news site. It is also Sabah's leading & most circulated daily English newspaper.
