Sabahan youth activist accosted at restaurant

Jufazli Shi Ahmad says three men followed him and his friends into a restaurant in Sandakan and threatened him.

PETALING JAYA: A prominent Sabahan youth activist was accosted by three men at a restaurant in Sandakan today and threatened that if he continued to speak about a certain VIP, something bad would befall him.

The victim, Jufazli Shi Ahmad 27, told FMT the three followed him and his two friends when they went to the Secret Recipe restaurant at Batu 4, Sandakan, at about 2.30pm.

“We didn’t realise we were being followed until after 15 minutes. A man approached me and tapped my cheek, asking me to meet him outside the restaurant.

“I just ignored him.”

Five minutes later, the trio confronted Jufazli again inside the restaurant and hurled profanities at him.

“They were threatening and provoking me inside the restaurant. They warned me not to speak about a VIP. But I ignored them.

“In the end, another guy in his 50s, with a moustache, shoved my head and yelled at me again.”

After creating a commotion inside the restaurant, the trio gave Jufazli a stern warning against criticising the Sabah state government and left abruptly in a car.

“They gave me a warning that if I kept speaking out, something bad will happen to me.”

Immediately after the assailants left, Jufazli and his two friends immediately lodged a police report.

However, Jufazli said police could not confirm if they would take follow-up action on the report.

Jufazli said he was not injured and that the incident would not dampen his spirits in seeking out the truth.

He said he believed the assault was linked to a Facebook live video he posted an hour earlier to connect with his 40,000 online fans.

Jufazli, a vocal critic of Sabah Chief Minister Musa Aman, is also the founder of Gerakan Anak Muda Selamatkan Sabah (GAMSS).

The 27-year-old said last month that he would contest in Musa’s stronghold of Sungai Sibuga, Sandakan, in the 14th general election.-FMT