By Social activist Remy Majangkim
KOTA KINABALU: In the past few weeks, there have been calls to bar Malayan-based political parties from contesting the next Sabah State Elections. The reasoning was that we needed local political parties to fight for and understand our plight within the Federation of Malaysia.
This is not a new effort, but common sense for all political parties to adhere to. However, it comes as a surprise to a new generation of voters that this was not practiced, whereas all buffets are free.
Since the last state election, Sabahan has been getting more educated on their lost rights. Back then, there was a call for the creation of a Borneo Bloc. Together with Sarawak, we should all band together as one voice to demand the return of our rights from the federal government.
But it was ignored and sabotaged by political parties that wanted to wrestle with the helm of the state government. In the past years, Sarawak has worked quietly on the side, knowing full well of their rights within the confines of the Malaysia Agreement of 1963. This has irked the Federal Government, as they put the effort into planning and finally announced it.
Take, for example, the Sarawak government’s commitment to ensure that the English medium will be used for the foreseeable future in the Sarawak education system. The use of the English language was part and parcel of the terms of the Malaysian Agreement. Did Sabah follow suit?
The current Sabah State Government is not taking a few steps forward, or rather, not taking any steps at all. This is evident in the recent 40% debacle, the multitude of bailouts by the state government on GLC companies, and multiple announcements in the range of millions or even billions in revenue to the state. How can we forget the lack of clean water supplies?
We are akin to drifting backwards with a sail down in an open sea. Sarawak, on the other hand, announces to all men on deck and manning the sail that the winds of change are favourable.
These are samples of compounding problems that were not addressed efficiently with transparency. Now, did we hear efforts made by other Malayan-based political parties to speak up with gusto about the plight of the people of Sabah in Dewan Undangan Negeri?
No, we never heard even a tinkle of words uttered in support of people’s problems. So, what are you doing? Working in silence until the upcoming election?
These questions need answering, and slowly and surely, we are becoming politically mature enough to make informed decisions. Remember, mistakes are an expensive endeavour, and it will cost you four to five years of your life to undo the mistakes you made in the previous years.
