Sabah BN partners blamed for not questioning Umno

PBS chief Joseph Pairin Kitingan compromised native rights to stay in power, says Sabah DAP.

KOTA KINABALU: The natives of Sabah will never regain their rightful place unless there’s a change of regime, according to state opposition DAP.

Party secretary Edwin Bosi said Umno had successfully engineered the rise of “new Bumiputeras” who have effectively overtaken the number of bona fide natives in Sabah.

He blamed the Sabah Barisan Nasional (BN) component parties, particularly PBS and its president, Joseph Pairin Kitingan, for compromising native rights to remain in power.

Stressing that Sabah DAP does not encourage party hopping, he called on the BN component parties in Sabah to re-evaluate their role and position in the coalition.

He said they must review the conduct of Umno in Sabah, especially in the issuance of Malaysian documents to those not qualified to be citizens but are voting in elections.

Bosi said that Sabah BN component parties, particularly PBS, had failed to question Umno for producing the “new Bumiputeras”.

“Umno top leaders have been incriminated as part and parcel of the IC project to systematically legalise illegal immigrants and put them on the electoral roll to ensure Umno and BN will rule Sabah forever.

“The other component parties are not spared… they are part of the process. In Bahasa Malaysia, we call this ‘bersubahat’,” he said.

“We just want to ask these BN component parties where is their conscience on this issue. Pairin and PBS are not concerned about the illegal immigrants…,” he said.

Umno’s survival in Sabah

Pairin, who is Huguan Siou (overall native chief), has stated that the problem of illegal immigrants will be resolved by 2012 but Bosi sees it as an impossible task.

He said that illegal immigrants were now legalised and were on the electoral rolls, which would ensure the survival and future of Umno and the ruling coalition.

Bosi, however, reminded Sabahans of their bravery in changing governments who worked against their wishes.

“Usno was shown the exit door because of Usno’s racist and religious extremism while Berjaya was shown the same way for its failure to feel the pulse of the people.

“Sabahans can do it once again. We will be doing it to save Sabah from economic disaster and failure and to take back Sabah from the hands of the new Bumiputeras.

“The political tsunami of 2008 saw five states in West Malaysia taken over by Pakatan Rakyat. Today, they have shown Malaysians how the country should be governed.

“The successes of the Pakatan governments in Penang and Selangor in uplifting the livelihood of the people, increasing business investments and reducing or eliminating corruption are proof of Pakatan’s capability in governing the country.

“Even Transparency International has stated that Penang is now the best managed state in Malaysia. Penang’s surplus budget after just three years in power says it all,” Bosi said.

He also urged Pairin to clear the air over former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s accusation that he (Pairin) had been the cause of the setback in Sabah’s development when he pulled PBS out of the BN on the eve of the general election in 1990.

He said it was only appropriate that Pairin emulate Mahathir and inform Sabahans what actually transpired during that fateful day in 1990 that caused the state to lose its social and religious characteristics.

‘Pairin ungrateful to LDP’

Bosi claimed that Sabahans had lost in every aspect of life, be it in government, business, or scholarship.

“Even Article 153 of the Federal Constitution which provides a quota for the Malays and the natives of Sabah and Sarawak is seen as not applicable to the non-Muslim natives.

“In fact, many contractors in this category are making expensive trips to Kuala Lumpur to practically ‘beg’ from the relevant ministers for contracts and projects. Is this a punishment for the community that gave strong support to Pairin and PBS?” he asked.

He also poured scorn on PBS’ return to BN in 2002, recalling that Pairin was heard saying in Kota Marudu, while campaigning there, that PBS would never re-join BN after pulling out of BN.

“He (Pairin) said that re-joining BN is like getting ourselves smeared by buffalo dung. Pairin then re-joined BN,” Bosi said.

He also accused Pairin and PBS of being ungrateful to their one-time close ally, the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), which engineered and facilitated PBS’ re-entry into BN.

“Without the blessing of LDP, PBS and Pairin would still be in the opposition bench. But that gesture from LDP has now been forgotten.

“This is typical of Pairin. He has forgotten his people when he re-entered BN and now he has forgotten the help rendered to him by LDP.

“Now, he has found a better friend and sleeping partner in Umno, the very party that kicked him out of power in 1994 using underhand tactics.” - FMT