MEMBAKUT: Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal has ticked-off Opposition leaders for merely harping about fighting for the rights of Sabahans in the Kimanis by-election campaign.
He said the Opposition should have been standing up for the rights of Sabahans in the past, instead of only doing it now.
When referring to the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63), Mohd Shafie, who is Parti Warisan Sabah (Warisan) president said that Barisan Nasional (BN) and Umno could have voted for the bill to amend the Federal Constitution in Parliament, which had sought to restore the status of Sabah and Sarawak as equal partners with Peninsular Malaysia as enshrined in MA63.
He explained that when the federation of Malaysia was formed in 1963, it comprised four regions - Peninsula Malaysia, Sabah, Sarawak, and Singapore. This meant that by right, Sabah has a special position unlike other states in the peninsular.
"We have special rights and powers that peninsula states do not have. We brought this up in Parliament and we voted to support it. However, the ones who did not support it were Umno and PAS," Mohd Shafie told Kadazandusun Murut villagers at the Sinuko district polling centre, last night.
"When we urged them to vote in the interest of Sabah people, they didn’t want to. Now they come to Kimanis, asking people to vote for them. Should we vote for them?" he asked, to which the villagers responded with a "no".
Should Warisan candidate for the parliamentary by-election Datuk Karim Bujang win in Kimanis, Mohd Shafie remarked: "I will bring up the issues of the Constitution and the debate in Parliament."
“However, what I'm worried about is if (constituents) give (their vote) to Umno,” he told reporters after a ceramah conducted by Warisan, here.
Mohd Shafie said the party machinery was working very hard to reach out to as many voters as possible.
He also said constituents in Kimanis had decided who to vote for, even before the by-election campaign began.
On a related matter, Mohd Shafie said he was not concerned about former Umno-turned-independant leader Datuk Seri Anifah Aman, who was rallying for BN in the campaign.
“The more he appears, the better it is for us (the ruling party)."
"He had voiced his regret over Umno’s failure to protect Sabah rights. And now he is supporting Umno (in the by-election). When he was a federal minister, why didn’t he engage with the Philippine government to open up a consulate in Sabah, just like Indonesia and China?
"He should have fought for the rights of Sabah when he was the foreign minister. I am disappointed that these (BN) leaders are just going round in circles," said Mohd Shafie.
At a separate ceramah organised by BN, Umno president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said the opposition coalition would restore all of Sabah’s rights as enshrined in MA63 if it become the government again.
“Believe us, we will implement 100 per cent of MA63 and this is not a random promise. Although there will be obstacles, we will follow through with it," he told villagers in Seladan.
Anifah, who was at the same event also spoke to his former constituents. He said he had refused to defend the seat as he did not recognise the court’s decision.
He said his decision to throw support behind BN in the by-election was to show his opposition against Warisan.
He said that he wanted BN to defend the party’s traditional seat in Kimanis, while also opposing the controversial Sabah Temporary Pass (PSS).
“It does not matter who is the candidate. The fight is more important. I cannot stand to see our people becoming beggars and refugees in their own country.
“There is only one intention which is to topple the Warisan (state) government because we love our children and grandchildren...The PSS proposal would pose significant impacts in terms of security in the state.
“A vote for Warisan would mean nine knives for our future generation. When (the security threat) really happens, it will be too late."
On Dec 2, the Federal Court upheld an Election Court ruling nullifying Anifah’s victory in the Kimanis parliamentary seat in the 2018 General Election, thus paving the way for a by-election in the constituency.