Govt lacks sincerity in truly pursuing Sabah rights - Yong

KOTA KINABALU - If the state government sincerely wants to engage the Sabah opposition in regaining Sabah rights, the best thing is to immediately dissolve the Legislative Assembly, former chief minister Yong Teck Lee said Thursday.

He said Sabah polls, separate from federal elections, should be held as soon as possible so that Sabah rights and Sabah issues will take centre stage.

“Let Sabahans decide on how and which political coalition shall represent them in the struggle to attain full autonomy for Sabah,” he said in a statement.

“After all, the Legislative Assembly has completed its order of business (on Thursday) and there is no other legislative agenda left.”

Yong who is also president of the Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) was apparently irked by the revelation at the just-concluded assembly that the Sabah Rights Review Committee has yet to complete its report.

The one-time firebrand politician termed the matter as another proof that the State government lacks sincerity in truly pursuing Sabah rights.

Yong went on to mention that the Rights Review Committee, chaired by a Cabinet minister took three months to study a report by its Technical Committee.

“This Review committee then invited (leaders of) political parties to give their views last January,” he said, stressing another three months had passed and yet this committee has still not produced a single report even though it already had a report from the Technical Committee.

“This committee now has to send another report to the Sabah Cabinet, which, if it agrees, will send yet another report to the “National Management and Delivery Unit Committee”.

Yong also queried if there not already two other federal committees tasked to handle the same thing?

One is the much-publicised committee jointly chaired by federal ministers Nancy Shukri (a Sarawakian) along with Anifah Aman, a Sabahan.

The other federal committee, which is chaired by the Federal Attorney General, includes the Sabah and Sarawak Attorneys General.

Yong also said that the report of the committee chaired by Teo Chee Kang will be sent to the federal committee co-chaired by Anifah.

“It is to be recalled that a team led Anifah had already submitted its findings to the Sabah Government and the Prime Minister on the same matter last year, he added.

“Now the Sabah government will send a report to the Anifah’s team which has previously submitted its report to the Sabah government. This is called the ‘merry-go-round’ ride popular with kids in a circus.