“Discuss at the state level among the Barisan Nasional (BN) component parties first (for the solution) then give me the solution,” Najib said when officiating Parti Bersatu Rakyat Sabah’s (PBRS) triennial delegates conference here yesterday.
“The problems with the presence of illegal immigrants in Sabah have been identified but seek a solution that can put Sabah in a better situation because the state’s potential is huge. If we can reduce this problem, guarantee the security in the state and reduce politicking, we will be able to move forward,” he said.
Najib stressed that Sabah must continue to enjoy its independence within Malaysia as its viability is within the federation.
“We, as leaders, must be fair to Sabahans. That is why I do all I can for Sabah, like ensuring development in the rural areas of the state to ensure that the folks there are not left out of the country’s mainstream development and progress,” he said.
BN is a party that the people can depend on, he said, adding that in the case of the illegal immigrants in Sabah, he had set up the Royal Commission of Inquiry to look into the problem as a result of the request from Sabahans.
On the issue of religion, Najib said, the government has never forcibly converted people to Islam, amid mounting claims of Islamisation in Borneo.
“The government holds to the principle that there is no compulsion in Islam. In Islam, there is a verse saying ‘to you your religion, to me my religion’. This means there is no compulsion in Islam. If an individual wants to convert to Islam, yes by all means, but there is no compulsion in Islam. So I want to give assurance that we hold on to this principle. If there are cases going against this, report it to the chief minister (and) to the government,” he said.
Najib said that if there are any such cases, it is not part of government policy, it could be the work of individuals and does not reflect the BN government’s policy or approach.
“The same goes for development. Tan Sri Joseph is one of the cabinet ministers who are always reminding me that our strength is in the rural areas. And because of this we must ensure rural development is given high priority. We must ensure all groups in rural areas feel that the BN government is attentive to their welfare and wellbeing. That is why I stressed rural development in the national 2016 budget,” he said.
The prime minister also reminded BN leaders to make sacrifices for the coalition to ensure that it remains in power.
“If we have the power, we can continue with our struggles even though we may not get all that we want. I believe that in BN, if you ask all the component parties, they will say that there are still requests which have not been fulfilled.
“If that is the situation, (it) means there is fair consideration because all feel that there is still room for consideration by BN. With this, we can move as a family. As BN chairman, I hold to the principle that all component parties must be treated fairly.
“We must also be fair to all races whether they are in the urban or rural areas… whether they are poor or otherwise, whether they are Muslim Bumiputera or not, whether they are the minority (because) we need to ensure that BN’s policies are inclusive,” he said.
Najib added that he is committed to the people in Sabah and Sarawak, adding, “for example, where there is dissent about government forms, where the non-Muslim Bumiputera feel that they should not be categorised as ‘lain-lain’, we made the changes. It has hurt their feelings and the BN government respects their feelings, he said.
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