I refer to the Malaysiakini report Pulau Pisang: Another banana skin for M'sia? This report mentioned the following:

1. ‘Pontian parliamentarian Ahmad Maslan said in a statement that the government should now act swiftly to protect the sovereignty of Pulau Pisang, situated about 15km off the Johor coastline in the Straits of Malacca.’ and

2. ‘Pas Youth chief Khairul Faizi Ahmad Kamil, in a separate statement, urged Malaysia to meet with Singapore to determine ownership over the island.’

These two gentlemen obviously raised the subject of the sovereignty of Pulau Pisang because of the recent ICJ judgement on Pulau Batu Puteh. For them to equate the status of Pulau Pisang to that of Pulau Batu Puteh shows how ignorant and pathetic our politicians and legislators are.

I won't be surprised if those people in the Singapore government are laughing their heads off after reading what our legislators are saying. Our legislators and senior politicians cannot even understand that the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore's (MPA) management and control of the Pulau Pisang lighthouse is completely different from that of the ownership of Pulau Batu Puteh.

The claim on the Pulau Batu Puteh is on the whole small island. On the other hand, the Pulau Pisang lighthouse actually sits on a distinct plot of land located in Pulau Pisang, and for the purpose of illustration, can be compared to a foreigner owning the land title to a hotel in say Kuala Lumpur.

The foreigner who owns the hotel property also manages and operates the hotel in Kuala Lumpur, just like MPA managing and operating the Pulau Pisang lighthouse. Does any of our parliamentarian or politician ever question if that foreigner who owns, manages and operates the KL hotel also have sovereignty or ownership over the whole of Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur? Why then are these people talking about protecting the sovereignty and ownership of Pulau Pisang?

Silly and emotional statements such as those made by Pontian parliamentarian Ahmad Maslan and Pas Youth chief Khairul Faizi Ahmad Kamil are not new. Such statements can cause unnecessary tensions when sensationalised by our so-called mainstream media. In fact some years back, similar statements were also made and as a result, this subject was raised in the Singapore Parliament. Their Minister Professor S Jayakumar then made the following statement to clarify matters:

‘Let me say up front Pulau Pisang belongs to Malaysia. We have never disputed Malaysia's sovereignty over Pulau Pisang but our MPA however has a right to operate the lighthouse there and the plot of land as well as the road leading to lighthouse has been granted in perpetuity so long as Singapore operates that lighthouse. It's in an indenture between the Johor Sultanate and the Straits Settlements in 1900; so we never contested the sovereignty.

‘But Pedra Branca is ours so its ridiculous for Malaysians to say that we can only operate the lighthouse and I might add that in 1968, the Malaysians objected that we fly our flag at Pulau Pisang and we took it down but never objected to flying Singapore flag at Pedra Branca.’

Singapore's rights in Pulau Pisang are confined to the plot of land on which the lighthouse sits and the road leading to it. Therefore there is no need for any of our nationalistic politicians to worry about the ownership and sovereignty of Pulau Pisang.