PRESS STATEMENT

Why No Federal Flood Aid for Sabahans Dr. Jeffrey

Kota Kinabalu: The Prime Minister should abandon and dismantle his 1-Malaysia policy and stop hoodwinking Sabahans with his hollow, rhetoric and meaningless statements appreciating Sabah and Sarawaks support for Umno/BN in the recent GE-13 said Datuk Dr. Jeffrey Kitingan, STAR Sabah Chief in response to the announcement that flood victims in the East Coast of the Peninsula will be given a RM500 flood aid. While not detracting that flood aid should be given to victims in the Peninsula, the PM need to reexamine and formulate consistent and wholesome policies and stop making impromptu decisions. If was clear that part of the decision taken to give impromptu flood aid was because of the on-going Umno general assembly and the raising of the flood situation in Kuantan by the MP concerned who happened to be from the opposition. I am quite sure that if that opposition MPs coalition had been in power, it would not have been necessary to raise the question in Parliament and aid extended unlike the ruling Umno/BN government where the Deputy PM have had to apologize for the delay in aid added Dr. Jeffrey. If the Prime Minister is serious with his national re-conciliation policy and to be a PM for all Malaysians which he is trying to portray outside his Umno circles, the flood aid should be extended to all Malaysians including in Sabah and Sarawak. The PM cum Finance Minister must remember that the funds at his disposal are the rakyats money and the ruling government is only the trustee guardian. The money does not belong to Umno or the BN just like some Umno delegates seem to think when suggesting that BR1M should only be given to Umno/BN supporters and not the opposition. For a fact, the majority of tax-payers are the non-Malays and the rakyats money ought to be spent wisely and not for political mileage. It is wrong for the Umno/BN leaders to give aid and having reporters at hand to cover the cheap publicity stunt with BN flags displayed all over the place as if the aid was being given by Umno/BN and not using the rakyats money. The federal government need to ensure fairness in their guardianship distribution of the rakyats money and extend the flood aid to Sabahans and Sarawakians. The call by a Sarawak BN elected representative is a timely reminder that BN also consists of Sabah and Sarawak parties and it also reflects the mood and feelings of Sabahans and Sarawakians. As it is, the voices clamouring for Sabah and Sarawak to leave Malaysia is growing stronger and stronger by the day. ../2-

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The continued mis-treatment and marginalization of Sabah and Sarawak by the PM and the federal government is just adding fuel to the fire for separation. Following the footsteps of the unequal hike in the electricity tariffs, the giving of flood aid to the Peninsula and not to Sabah and Sarawak is just but another one of the unfair treatment of Sabahans and Sarawakians and lending credence and indirect support to the calls for separation from Malaysia. If the federal government continues with the lop-sided policies and ignore Sabah and Sarawak, the time will soon come for Malaysia to comprise of only the Peninsula without Sabah and Sarawak or the reversion back to the Federation of Malaya or Persekutuan Tanah Melayu which appears to be the basis of the Umno and right-wing calls for 1-Melayu. Or perhaps the federal government should seriously consider allowing Sabah and Sarawak to part ways just like Singapore in 1965 and focus on the 1-Melayu concept in the Peninsula.

Datuk Dr. Jeffrey Kitingan Chairman, STAR Sabah 09 December 2013