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(Borneo Post) - KOTA KINABALU: Former Petagas assemblyman Datuk James Ligunjang yesterday urged the State Barisan Nasional government not to remove Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) from the state administration.
James said the sacking of SAPP might not go down well with the Sabah people, and it would invite serious repercussions in the next general election. The people of Sabah might severely punish the Sabah BN in the polls, he said. The action taken by SAPP on Wednesday was consistent with the concerns of Sabahans on the non-action on the part of the prime minister on the primary issues affecting Sabah vis a vis, oil royalty, illegal immigrants and the high inflation rate which could potentially increase the poverty level in Sabah, he said. “Every Sabahan knows as well as most Sabahan politicians know that what SAPP has been saying to the federal government are issues Sabahans wanted to be resolved for many, many years! “I, for one, applaud what SAPP is doing as well as other courageous leaders like Datuk Anifah Aman and Datuk Ghapur Salleh from Sabah Umno, Datuk Edmond Chong from PBS and Datuk Wilfred Bumburing from Upko. They have been fearless in articulating the interests of Sabahans in parliament. I cannot help but be proud of them,” said James. “Sabahan politicians must realise this laughable oddity of being in a ‘rich state of poor people’, he added. Despite its richness in natural resources like oil, timber, rich agricultural land, and bountiful marine products, yet Sabah tops in having the highest poverty rate at 23 per cent in the nation,” he pointed out in a statement yesterday. James said the request by Sabah BN component parties to consider some increase in the oil royalty had fallen on deaf ears. The federal minister in charge of Petronas had informed Parliament that request on any increase in oil royalty would not be entertained, he alleged. The least the prime minister could have done was to consider some increase to assuage Malaysians in the oil producing states, namely Sabah, Sarawak and Terengganu, he said. He said, “The oddity here is these states are about the poorest in the country! Sabah being the poorest in hierarchy, followed closely by Terengganu and Sarawak cannot be far behind when the rural folks are still living in longhouses! “The refusal by the prime minister to accede to the request to set up the Royal Commission of Inquiry on illegal immigrants in Sabah is incomprehensible and indefensible when the threat posed can be a serious threat to the social and security of the nation we love so much. Any other country would have readily established such an inquiry. Comparing the Linghamgate to the illegal immigrants issue, I consider it highly insignificant and yet a Royal Commission of Inquiry was established,” he said. James is confident that Sabah leaders from the various BN component parties would be united in their desire to assure the younger generation of Sabahans that they had a better future in ‘our country called Malaysia’.
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