Day 12 | Spotted: Banners encouraging voters, parties to stay united

 

GE15 LIVE DAY 12 | It’s the 12th day of the 15th general election campaign and there are only two days left before voters go out to cast their ballots.

Follow our live blog as the Malaysiakini team brings you the news as it takes place.

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Kit Siang vows special office to promote rights of Sabah, S’wak

10.25am: DAP veteran Lim Kit Siang promises to set up a special office to promote the restoration of the rights of Sabah and Sarawak in accordance with Malaysia Agreement 1963, should Pakatan Harapan wins the general election.

At a DAP ceramah in Tenom last night, he said it is a great disgrace to Sabah and Malaysia that Sabah, with so many resources, is one of the poorest areas with double-digit figure poverty.

DAP veteran Lim Kit Siang

"Every Sabahan must ask why Sabah, one of the territories endowed with the richest natural resources like oil, gas, timber and fertile soil, should end up as the poorest territory in the country six decades after the formation of Malaysia.

"If there is no corruption and abuses of power, and good governance is the order of the day in the last six decades, Sabah’s rich resources should be reflected in the poverty rate, and as Sabah is one of the richest states in the country, the poverty rate in Sabah should be below the national poverty rate."

He says Sabahans and Sarawakians were promised before Malaysia was formed in 1963 that if Sabah and Sarawak joined in the formation of Malaysia, Sabah and Sarawak will enjoy the progress and infrastructure development in Malaya.

However, he adds that almost six decades have passed, but Sabahans and Sarawakians are still as poor as ever, and even the three pledges in Keningau Batu Sumpah to uphold the three pledges of “Ugama bebas dalam Sabah”, “Tanah-tanah dalam Sabah dikuasai oleh kerajaan Sabah” and “Adat istiadat anak rayat Sabah dihormatkan dan dipelihara oleh kerajaan” had been neglected.

"One of the first tasks of my special office for the restoration of rights of Sabah in accordance with Malaysia Agreement 1963 will be on the Keningau Batu Sumpah - the extent the three pledges had been honoured in the past 60 years," he says.

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Spotted: Banners encouraging everyone to stay united

9.30am: Banners encouraging voters and political parties to stay united despite the difference in their political leanings have been spotted at several locations in Selangor.

The banners, in Bahasa Malaysia, read: "Tidak kira apa fahaman politik. Jangan sampai tidak bertegur sapa dan saling bermusuhan. Kita semua satu komuniti. Kekalkan muafakat. Mungkin musuh hari ini yang akan menguruskan jenazah kita pada hari esok. (No matter what your political leaning is, do not get hostile with one another. We are one community. Maintain harmony. Maybe your enemy today will be the one managing your remains tomorrow)."

One such banner in Semenyih can be seen near Surau Al-Kauthar in Bandar Tasik Kesuma, according to netizen S Munirah Alatas.

"The message is so clear, so simple, yet, has been so difficult to adhere to. Our politicians have transformed into a selfish, disgusting lot," she writes on Facebook.

[More to follow] - Mkini