Warisan, Sabah PH dismiss Rahman’s ‘richest state’ promise

Parti Warisan Sabah and Pakatan Harapan Youth secretariat say Sabah should have become the richest state a long time ago.

KOTA KINABALU: Parti Warisan Sabah and the Sabah Pakatan Harapan Youth secretariat have dismissed Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Abdul Rahman Dahlan’s claim that Sabah can become Malaysia’s richest state under the BN’s administration.

Warisan said it was unimpressed with the contention made by Rahman that Sabah will be rich in due course under the stewardship of Chief Minister Musa Aman.

“Musa has been the chief minister since 2003 while Sabah BN has been in power since 1994,” said Warisan’s information chief Honorsius Joe Bosuin in a statement.

He said Sabah was blessed with world-class tourism products, large petroleum reserves, massive land with unique jungle products and currently is the major contributor of palm oil in Malaysia.

Bosuin said Sabah BN had 24 years to make Sabah the highest-income state, surpassing even Selangor, but BN had opted not to.

“With all the natural resources given by God to us, what we really yearn for is for Sabahans in the state to become high-income earners, surpassing their counterparts in Malaya in the same fields or industries which they are in,” he said.

“But this never happened and instead what we can see is that Sabah rubber farmers have to sell it at a lower price compared with those in Malaya.

“Not only that, our minimum wage is RM980 a month, which is the lowest in Malaysia, causing tens of thousands of our Sabahan youths to seek jobs by migrating somewhere else.

“At the same time, basic necessities here are sold at a higher price than those in Malaya.

“Until now, our fellow Sabahans in the rural areas and interiors are still dependent on many of the goodies given by BN such as BR1M and PPRT (poor people’s housing project)

“The statement made by Rahman also clearly affirms to us that Musa is highly dependent on Umno and (Prime Minister) Najib Razak in order for him to continue developing the state.”

He said Warisan will come out with a new deal for Sabahans. At the same time, it will make it a priority to make Sabah a high-income earning state.

“Warisan leaders do not want to be continuously dependent on Putrajaya. We want to emulate what Selangor and Penang are currently doing now, and even better.”

Sabah Pakatan Harapan Youth secretariat secretary Razer Rakimin said Rahman should not make a fool of Sabahans.

“We are actually the richest territory in Malaysia with our palm oil, timber industry and oil.

“Our tourism industry is also tops with a lot of attractions, such as Sipadan Island, Mount Kinabalu and so on.

“But where have all these gone? How come Sabah is the poorest state in Malaysia? This is not our speculation but proven by data from the World Bank.”

Razeef said Musa had been given the chance and a long time to turn the state’s fate around but had failed to do so.

“People, especially in the rural areas, are still without a lot of things, such as water, electricity, roads, etc.

“Their native customary lands are taken away by cronies, like in the Mandalom forest reserve in Pensiangan.

“Rahman’s own Kota Belud constituency is still poor, lacking water and roads in certain places. Unplanned projects are carried out just to gain election votes and these cause flooding.

“Rahman, when officiating Sepanggar Umno’s annual meeting on Saturday, promised wider roads which are already big and to build four flyovers along an 8km road just because it’s near his home, neglecting his own backward constituency.

“Are the people going to trust the BN government again? I believe the people are now wiser.”

Rahman, the minister in charge of the Economic Planning Unit (EPU), had expressed confidence that for Sabah to become the richest state is not impossible to achieve.

“Give a bit more time to Musa and we’ll see Sabah becoming the most developed state in the country. This can happen.

“Indeed, the next wave of development in the country will be catalysed by Sabah and Sarawak,” he was reported as saying by local paper Daily Express. -FMT