Shafie dismisses charges DAP’s Sandakan candidate inexperienced

Warisan president Shafie Apdal.

SANDAKAN: DAP candidate Vivian Wong may be young but she is mature for her age and the perfect candidate for Sandakan, said Warisan president Shafie Apdal.

Speaking to reporters at the Sandakan by-election nomination centre here today, Shafie dismissed the claim by Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) president Maximus Ongkili that Parliament was not the place for a greenhorn.

“Vivian has been following closely her late father, Stephen Wong, who was the previous Sandakan MP. She is not new.

“What is more important is the need to resolve the people’s problems. PBS failed to do that even though they were in the government for over 20 years.

“You need to work together with the federal government to address the needs of the people in Sabah and I don’t think PBS can do that. They have tried but failed,” he said.

Shafie, who is chief minister, said Vivian was capable of shouldering the responsibility of being an MP despite her young age.

He said he had seen Vivian giving speeches and he was amazed at her ability to articulate her opinions.

Nevertheless, Shafie advised Pakatan Harapan and Warisan supporters not to be over-confident in the by-election.

“The most important thing is, we need to continue going down to the ground and meeting the people. I am confident the people in Sandakan are smart and know who they want to represent them,” he said.

Commenting on the people’s grouses against the state government, Shafie said the people should give the Sabah government a chance and should not blame everything on the 11-month-old government.

He said the government would continue to carry out its agenda, especially in creating jobs for the people.

Commenting on a Merdeka Research Centre finding, published yesterday, that only 39% of Malaysian voters were satisfied with the current federal government, Shafie said the research centre did not know the situation in Sabah.

“I’m not sure what happened there in the peninsula but we know what they want in Sabah, not these Merdeka Centre people.

“We are working closely with the federal government but I am quite sure, in terms of development, our friends, especially from DAP, will assist us. We need more development projects in Sabah.

“If voters go for the independent candidates, what can independent MPs do for them in the next four years?

“Sandakan had an independent MP before but it was not easy for him to resolve the people’s problems and meet their demands.

“A government representative is the best bet for the residents in Sandakan.” - FMT