PRESSSTATEMENT

AbolishandDismantleParallelGovernmentinSabahJeffrey
Kota Kinabalu: The Federal and State governments should abolish the Federal Secretary Office and dismantle the parallel government machinery in Sabah and put words into action on their recognition of Sabahs autonomy said Datuk Dr. Jeffrey Kitingan, STAR Sabah Chief, when asked to commentonthecalltochannelfederalfundstotheStategovernment. The Prime Minister had proudly announced that the 20Points was intact during the recent GE13 electionsandacknowledgedthatSabahsautonomywasnotinissue. We call upon Umno/Federal and State governments to implement PMs Janji DiTepati and start treating Sabah (and Sarawak) as equal partners in Malaysia and not treat the Borneo States as though they belong to Umno/Malaya and as if Sabahs wealth and resources are private properties andexclusivelymanagedbyUmno. The Federal Secretary Office (FSO) reestablished in Sabah since 1990 is the equivalent of a parallel government in Sabah. It not only humiliates the State government and treats Sabah as their step childbutalsocontrolsthepursestringsandprojectsforUmnospoliticalpowergame. There is no basis whatsoever to maintain the FSO more so since the State government is effectively controlledbyUmno. There should be a review of the roles and presence of the federal departments and agencies in Sabah. Many of them are merely duplicating the roles of the Sabah government and Sabah departments and agencies so much so that they are killing the local counterparts and depriving Sabahans of job opportunities as they are usually staffed with senior and middle personnel from Malaya. There is no necessity for Risda, Felda, Felcra, LKIM, Bernas, Mardi, Agriculture Department, MTIB, LGM and many others to be in Sabah when their roles can be handled more effectively by SLDB, Sabah Marine, Sabah Padi Board, Sabah Agriculture, Forestry Department with its Sabah Forestry Institutewhichisworldrenowned,LIGSandothers. The vision of FSO to be the prime mover towards excellence and accountability of the federal departments/agencies in Sabah ends up with a contradictory role in sidelining and killing local agencies when a more nobler objective of the federal government should be to improve and enhance performance of Sabah agencies. Unless it is the federal intention to have the FSO at all costs and does not bother with the collateral damage of killing local agencies and depriving locals of jobs. ../2

2 The presence of the FSO contradicts its mission as it being the parallel government does nothing to foster closer relations and be an effective channel between the State and federal administrations. To better achieve this would be to share the federal government between Malaya and the Borneo States.TheFSOcanneverbeamoreeffectivechannelthanthefederalCabinet. The PM has taken the step, more by forced circumstances than by choice to maintain his Umno/BN federal government, to appoint 11 Ministers and 10 Deputies from Sabah and Sarawak. The next step is to have at least haif of the 34 Ministers and 27 Deputies from Sabah and Sarawak which can be done at the next Cabinet reshuffle which the PM has pledged to do after the Umno elections laterthisyeartoaccommodatemoreMinistersfromSarawak. The other mission to assist and facilitate implementation of development projects more smoothly and orderly is nothing more than facilitating control of projects by Umno/Malayan leaders and their cronies. The time has come for the Sabah Cabinet and the Sabah federal MPs to need to abandon their worship of their Umno/Malaya leaders and start thinking of, standing on its own feet and acting in the best interests of Sabah without control from its political masters in Putrajaya starting with the dismantlingoftheparallelgovernmentinSabah. This is part of the essence of STARs struggle and the Borneo Agenda for Sabah and wanting Sabahans to chart their own future and destiny. Sabah can be a leading and proud nation within Malaysiaonceagainifproperstepsaretakenfromnow. DatukDr.JeffreyKitingan Chairman STARSabah 05June2013