NGO laughs off Sabah's grand plan, calls it 'far-fetched'

KOTA KINABALU, July 14, 2010: Sabah Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Masidi Manjun's pledge to make Sabah "the best place in Asia to reside" is nothing but a joke, said Common Interest Group Malaysia or CigMa. Its deputy president Daniel John Jambun said Masidi was obviously too detached from the reality of life in major towns of Sabah in proposing the idea.

"Masidi should first tell his bosses in Kuala Lumpur to stop the unabated influx of illegal immigrants from southern Philippines and Indonesia before dreaming of such a pledge to make Sabah the best place to reside.

"Look at our crime rate ... the murder cases, snatch thefts, and robberies. In some cases these ungrateful people are even openly intimidating and harassing the locals.

"They are testing our patience to the limit. Masidi, please don't insult our intelligence with your far-fetched goal," Daniel John said tersely.

Masidi told local newspapers this week of plans to make Sabah the best place to reside in this region.

According to Daniel John, the plan was a mere election gimmick.

He said that with the general election around the corner, Umno is now running a campaign to portray that they have done their best for Sabah.

"I hope Sabahans are not easily taken in by Umno's hallucinating observations," he told FMT on Tuesday.

The foolish CIA link

Daniel John also lashed out at Umno supreme council member Mohd Puad Zarkashi's attempt to link Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim to the American intelligence agency CIA.

"This is another joke...to link link Anwar to the CIA and the Jewish lobbyists.

"But, Puad what about these illegal foreigners in Sabah being given MyKads and allowed to infiltrate Sabah's electoral rolls?" he asked.

Daniel John claimed that many in Sabah felt that the easy influx of Muslim immigrants from southern Philippines and Indonesian Sulawesi and Java was supported by a covert operation at the centre to dilute the Christian majority in Sabah and Sarawak.

"The local natives are now asking why the federal government is so soft against this group of intruders? However they were so harsh against the non-Muslims from Vietnam and Cambodia in 1970's and 1980's when they were refugees of civil war.

"These groups were rounded up even while at high sea. They were fenced in Bidong Island.

"Why has not the same harsh arrangement been meted out to the illegal immigrants from Mindanao and Sulawesi? Why the double standard..." he lamented.

By Luke Rintod  more links