By Daniel John Jambun, President Change Advocate Movement of Sabah (CAMOS)
KOTA KINABALU: CAMOS notes the series of economic relief measures announced by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim in Sabah this week, including the raising of the e-invoicing exemption threshold and the doubling of government allocations for SME tax refunds.
These are positive steps that will benefit small businesses and relieve pressure on struggling economic sectors.
However, it is important for the public — especially in West Malaysia — to understand the political context behind these sudden reforms.
The reality is this:
If Warisan had not delivered a decisive electoral victory over Pakatan Harapan (PH) and GRS in the recent Sabah state election, Putrajaya would not have moved so quickly to address SME burdens.
PH was almost completely rejected by Sabah voters, securing only one seat.
GRS formed the government with the slimmest of margins.
The only party that emerged with a clear, broad-based mandate was Warisan, which dominated both urban and rural constituencies across ethnic lines.
This outcome sent a powerful message to the federal leadership.
The economic concessions announced in Sabah this week were not the result of political strength in the state.
They were the result of political weakness — and of Sabah voters asserting their democratic will.
Had PH and GRS won convincingly, there would have been no pressure for Putrajaya to adjust national economic policy.
There would have been no urgency to reform the e-invoicing rollout.
There would have been no doubling of funds for tax refunds.
Simply put:
> West Malaysians should recognise that recent SME-friendly measures were forced by Sabah’s voters — particularly those who supported Warisan.
For far too long, Sabah has been treated as a political afterthought.
The federal response this week proves that when Sabah speaks decisively, the national government listens.
CAMOS is not criticising the prime minister’s actions — we welcome them.
But we must be intellectually honest:
these reforms were triggered by Sabah’s electoral verdict, not by PH’s influence or strength in the state.
This is how democracy should function:
the people send a message, and the government responds.
Moving forward, CAMOS urges Putrajaya to treat Sabah not as a peripheral region but as a key driver of national policy direction, especially on issues tied to economic development, MA63 implementation, and federal-state relations.
Sabah has once again shown that it is not a passive observer in Malaysian politics.
It is a political force capable of shaping the national agenda — when it chooses to.
