BN still best bet for Sabahans, says Najib

Prime Minister Najib Razak is optimistic voters in Sabah will retain current government, saying a lot can be accomplished under Barisan Nasional.

Prime Minister Najib Razak addresses state and federal civil servants in Kota Kinabalu.

KOTA KINABALU: Prime Minister Najib Razak says although he is confident that the people of Sabah still favour Barisan Nasional (BN) the ruling coalition’s leaders must be on guard against complacency in the lead-up to the 14th general election (GE14).

He said BN members should not fix their sights on the outcome of the polls but concentrate on working to deliver for the people.

“I am confident that Sabah is still with BN, but I don’t want to be careless and complacent and be lulled by overconfidence,” he said.

“We still have to work hard and the message to them (BN members) is they should focus not on the result (of the election) but on their responsibilities.

“That has to come first,” he told reporters after addressing staff from state and federal public services here today.

In his speech earlier, Najib said the people did not need another government to fight for their rights and interests as “the BN government will take care of Sabahans’ rights”.

“I have said this before, that if we had taken or accidentally taken the rights of Sabahans we will return those rights. I, Najib Razak, will guarantee the rights of Sabahans,” he said.

He said Sabah’s future was bright under BN, pointing out that the state needed political stability.

“If it’s in chaos then all the dreams will be shattered,” he said, adding that the government’s work would be easier with a lot being accomplished under the coalition which was united.

“But if it’s another party, it will be difficult. We (federal government) have a lot of problems with the Penang and Selangor governments because they are more about politics than about administration,” he said.

Najib said the federal government had almost no problems dealing with the Sabah and Sarawak state governments because they were all part of the BN family.

He said the people would eventually regret removing a government that had brought them much benefit.

Boost for Sabahan talents

He said besides channelling large allocations to the state, he had also enabled capable Sabahans to hold leadership roles at the national level.

“After the 13th general election I appointed seven ministers from Sabah. There are six left now because one of them ‘tolak rezeki’ (relinquished the position),” he said, in an apparent dig at former rural and regional development minister Shafie Apdal who quit Umno and formed opposition Parti Warisan Sabah.

Najib also said that for the first time ever a Sabahan, Sabin Samitah, was leading the Inland Revenue Board as CEO while another, Amin Senin, was appointed as the Education Department’s director-general.

He added that he was also keen on delivering the three-year target that had been set in 2015 of having 90% Sabahan teachers serving in the state.

“And when Sabah Chief Minister Musa Aman asks for allocations, I have never rejected. For the 2018 Budget, I approved an initial RM3.89 billion especially for Sabah and another additional special allocation of RM2.34 billion,” he said.

“For dilapidated schools in Sabah, I approved RM1 billion… In a few years from now, I don’t want to see any more such schools,” he said, adding that RM12.86 billion was also set aside for the first phase of the Pan-Borneo Highway construction.

On security, Najib said the government has allocated RM250 million for the Eastern Sabah Security Command (EssCom) to enhance security controls at the borders of Sabah and Sarawak. -FMT