Former Prime Minister Dr. Mahathir Mohamad explained the citizenships given to migrants in Sabah such as the Sulus during his time as prime minister, adding that instead of behaving like Myanmar, which denies the Rohingyas of their citizenships, Malaysia gave the Sulus a home.

He was responding to a question from an audience member at a talk organized by the Cooler Lumpur literary festival entitled "Dangerous Ideas".