Opposition leaders ‘not from heaven’

By Luke Rintod and Pushparani Thilaganathan of FMT

A widespread whisper campaign may end Umno's reign in
Sabah, given the RCI revelations and Prime Minister
Najib Tun Razak's desperate need for his own
loyalists in the next GE.

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah Umno is bracing itself for back-to-back visits next week by Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak and his deputy Muhyiddin Yassin.

Najib, who is to pay a two-day visit to Sabah on Feb 13-14, is expected to meet local Umno warlords and Barisan Nasional coalition partners in the state.

Though the visit has not been officially announced, sources said the prime minister is expected to call a BN meeting to formally notify the Sabah BN partners of the list of candidates for the on-coming 13th general election as well as the distribution of both state and parliamentary seats.

The prime minister’s visit comes after he reportedly met, last month, with Sarawak Chief Minister Taib Mahmud who handed him his list of those who will be contesting the impending election under the BN ticket.

Cholera outbreak in Kota Belud kampung

The cases of cholera has
been linked to villagers
using untreated water.

By Luke Rintod of FMT

KOTA BELUD: A t least 3 cases of cholera have been confirmed in  Kg Pantai Mas in Tempasuk near here.

Suspicion of cases of cholera at the seaside kampung started a week ago when signs of it were detected by the district hospital.

FMT learned that the  villagers in Pantai Mas were furious because the outbreak partly stemmed from lack of supply of treated water. Most of them still used untreated water from traditional wells as well as deep-bored holes .

A man who only wanted to be known as Sabli told FMT that the kampung has been waiting for water supply for ages and that pipes actually had already been laid in the kampung areas for quite some time but that there is no water until now.

Sabah RCI: NRD man got RM1.0m for letting immigrants vote

He says he had been waiting for his turn
which might finally come today (Thursday)

By Luke Rintod of FMT

KOTA KINABALU: The foremost advocate for Sabah state autonomy, Jeffrey Kitingan, who helped expose “Project IC” in Sabah, is expected to be called in by the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) on illegal immigrants in Sabah from tomorrow.

He has been on standby since Monday after the RCI notified him he probably would be called at this second session and possibly at another session after the Chinese New Year.

When contacted by FMT here today, Jeffrey said he had been waiting for his turn which might finally come tomorrow (Thursday).

It is understood the RCI is expected to give at least 24-hour notice to witnesses to appear before it.

Govt bias against Christian contractors

By Luke Rintod of FMT

They are genuine contractors trying to participate in
the economic development in the country, says SAPP

 KOTA BELUD: A senior Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) leader, Peter Marajin, called on the authorities to look into claims that it has been difficult for Dusun Christian contractors in the district to get government jobs amid allegations of race discrimination by officers including at the development unit of the District Office.

“I take seriously such complaints because they kept coming to my ear and that these small time contractors alleged that some of their peers had stopped “trying” to get jobs after being continuously sidelined by those in the authorities.

Umno needs Sabah, S’wak to hold premiership

PKR-led Pakatan Rakyat is greedier than Umno, claims a
Sabah opposition party leader frustrated with Umno
and Pakatan 'hegemony'

By Luke Rintod of FMT

KOTA KINABALU: UK-based NGO,  Borneo’s Plight in Malaysia (BoPiMaFo) believes the only reason Malaya based parties are desperate to retain Sabah and ‘invade’ Sarawak is so that they can continue to decide which Umno leader would become the Prime Minister.

Daniel Jambun, who leads BoPiMaFo, said: “Umno wanted to go to Sarawak but its dream was shattered not because of Sarawak BN parties’ refusal but because of the people.

“If Umno spreads its wings to Sarawak, it would empower Sabah and Sarawak to decide who would be Umno president and eventually Prime Minister as both combined number of delegates from East Malaysia would have been the biggest to Umno’s annual assembly.

Jeffrey: 2013 tahun perubahan bagi Sabah

Ketua Parti Reformasi Negeri (STAR) negeri Sabah
itu juga meramalkan perubahan besar akan berlaku
pada lanskap politik negara.

By Luke Rintod of FMT

TAMBUNAN : Ketua Parti Reformasi Negeri (STAR) negeri Sabah, Datuk Dr Jeffrey Kitingan, berkata tahun 2013 merupakan tahun untuk membetulkan kesilapan, perubahan dan pemulihan bagi rakyat Sabah.

“Tahun ini akan menjadi tahun pembetulan, perubahan dan pemulihan bagi kita semua, sebab sudah banyak yang salah perlu diperbetulkan,” katanya sambil meramalkan perubahan besar akan berlaku pada lanskap politik negara.

Jeffrey berkata demikian dalam ucapannya sempena sambutan Krismas dan Tahun Baru beliau yang diadakan di Tambunan Village Resort Centre (TVRC) dekat sini semalam.

We don’t need Malayan leaders to preach unity

Leaders from Malaya should not teach Sabahans what is
the meaning of racial harmony as we in Sabah have had
the most harmonious relationship, says Yong Teck Lee.

By Luke Rintod of FMT

KOTA BELUD: Sabah Progressive Party president Yong Teck Lee has condemned political leaders from Peninsular Malaysia, including from the Pakatan Rakyat, who come to Sabah lecturing to the local people on how to unite and not be racial.

“Leaders from Malaya should not teach Sabahans what is the meaning of racial harmony as we in Sabah have had the most harmonious relationship,” he said.

“DAP leaders like Selangor Speaker Teng Cheng Kim who came to Sandakan recently should not tell us how to unite. It is in the peninsula that racial disharmony is prevalent,” Yong said in his speech at a family gathering of one of SAPP’s leaders in Kg Kebayau near here yesterday.

Stop PR stunts, get real with Christians

An NGO says this Christmas is the time for Najib
to ponder and really hear the Christians on the
issue of fairness and justice.

By Luke Rintod of FMT

KOTA KINABALU: Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak has been asked to stop his “public relations stunts” and instead deal with the biased treatment his federal administration has meted out to Christians in Sabah and Sarawak.

Demanding that Najib “walk his talk”, a local NGO, Borneo’s Plight in Malaysia Foundation (BoPiMaFo), said the PM’s “nice words” in his Christmas message yesterday, rang “hollow as far as sincerity and truth is concerned” when compared to the “real situation” in Malaysia affecting Christians.

The foundation’s president Daniel Jambun said that in Sabah especially, the “Christian community continued to be increasingly marginalised and victimised by loads of actions from Najib’s ruling party Umno.”

‘Can we trust Sabah BN leaders, anymore?’

The only reason Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak is
desperately wooing Sabah is because Umno can no
longer rule Peninsular Malaysia without
Sabah and Sarawak.

By Luke Rintod of FMT

PENAMPANG: A veteran political activist who was once with Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) said many among the Barisan Nasional leaders in Sabah had at many times told crowds that BN stands for “Barisan Nah Sial”.

Fredoline Edwin Lojingki, 71, who is now with opposition State Reform Party (STAR) said he could name these hypocrite leaders who are now heaping praises after praises on BN and its corrupt leaders.

“These leaders once referred to BN as Barisan Nah Sial but they are singing a different tune now because they are now ministers, they got projects and all the trappings of power,” he said in a statement here today in response to PBS Johnny Mositun’s statement yesterday.

Year-end visits to Sabah by Najib, Anwar

It is learned that both have scheduled their final visits to
the politically volatile state on Dec 28 and 29 respectively.

By Luke Rintod of FMT 

KOTA KINABALU: Come year-end, the country’s top two “rivals” in Malaysian politics – Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak and opposition supremo Anwar Ibrahim – will once again slog it out in Sabah.

It is reliably learned that both have scheduled their final visits to the politically volatile state on Dec 28 and 29 respectively.

Besides wooing potential voters here, the duo will be also be fighting for spaces in the local newspapers.

Media editors here have spoken of the “interesting” heat emanating from the political slugging and its reach to voters across the vast state of Sabah.

Stop bullying NGOs, Sabah govt told

By Luke Rintod of FMT

A well known activists wants the Sabah state
government to stop harassing non-governmental
organisations in the state.

KOTA KINABALU: A long-serving Sabah human rights and social activist here has called on the Sabah government to be more accommodating to civil society groups in the state and not to apply unnecessary “pressure” on non-governmental organisations.

Patrick Sindu, said any “subtle pressure” from the government on these groups could be interpreted by the public and the international community, either rightly or wrongly, as interfering, manipulating, victimising or exploiting these NGOs in an effort to align them with the state government.

Frantic Najib in Sabah, again?

By Luke Rintod of FMT

The prime minister is expected to be in Sabah
tomorrow to shore up support for the Barisan
Nasional among the Christian community ahead
of the Christmas celebrations.

KOTA KINABALU: Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak is scheduled to visit Sabah twice this month, in what many here consider as an increasingly desperate effort to retain his coalition government’s grip on what is looking like a battle-ground state.

Najib is expected to arrive in Sandakan tomorrow (Dec 15) to open the annual congress of Sabah Barisan Nasional minor partner, Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), the following day.

On Dec 28, Najib is expected to visit rural Pensiangan where another tiny BN component, Parti Bersatu Rakyat Sabah (PBRS), is holding its own annual general meeting.

Sabah consumer body treads fine line

State Reform Party member James Bagah says
he felt forced to give up his political
belief for the sake of his NGO.

By Luke Rintod of FMT

KOTA KINABALU: The Consumers Affairs and Protection Society of Sabah (Caps) has come under pressure from the state Barisan Nasional government to remain independent on the political front.

Its president James Bagah felt the government’s displeasure after he threw in his lot with the opposition but soldiered on until this weekend.

The State Reform Party (Star) member said he felt forced to give up his political belief for the sake of the NGO.

Bagah announced his resignation from Star that is led by Jeffrey Kitingan and showed a letter to the party at the end of Caps’ coordinators meeting at Hongkod Koisaan building on Friday.

Govt silence on palm oil price drop causing jitters

The government is accused of just waiting
for things to happen rather than plotting
new strategies to benefit smallholders.

By Luke Rintod of FMT

RANAU: The plummeting price of Sabah’s main commodity – palm oil – has made government leaders vulnerable to criticism from the opposition for failing to address the issue

Jalibin Paidi, a state committee member of State Reform Party (Star) is the latest to take to task both the federal and state governments for not taking any concrete step to alleviate the situation that threatened to push thousands of smallholders back into the poverty bracket.

Days ago, Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) president, Yong Teck Lee, highlighted the issue during a visit to the east coast of the state.

Star will work with ‘any’ coalition that wins

By Luke Rintod of FMT

Jeffrey Kitingan has threatened legal action against those
spreading rumours that his party Star is being financed
by Umno to split the opposition vote.

KOTA KINABALU: If politicians and supporters are holding out for a pre-election pact between the State Reform Party (Star) and the Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP), they best forget it.

Both parties’ words and actions point to it being a lost cause. But leaders on either side are nonetheless keeping alive the ‘line’ that they are working on a deal which opposition supporters in the state and are hopeful of hammering it out in time.

They have been maneuvering for this since the beginning of the year and if nothing else, their periodic shout outs for a deal has proved they are no closer to it since they first indicated they wanted one.

Umno leaders and London properties

By Luke Rintod of FMT

LONDON: There is no doubt that Umno leaders are filthy rich. In fact, word here is that almost all senior federal leaders in Umno are so wealthy that they own multiple properties in central London.

Not surprising, their spendthrift ways and that of their children have been making the news for a while.

Malaysians living in London have been privy to this information for decades and view it with repugnance and shame.

They are surprised that despite the dazzling light on the unusual wealth accumulated by government ministers which is displayed in their purchase of numerous properties around the world, their brazen hypocrisy elicits little comment back home.

Sabah opposition ‘magic’ number is 10

According to PAS, although 60% of the electorate
'favour us', only a one-to-one fight with BN
could ensure a win for the opposition.

By Luke Rintod of FMT

LONDON: Voters in Sabah will have to deliver at least 10 parliamentary seats to the opposition to end the over 50-year reign of the Umno-led federal coalition government.

PAS deputy president, Mohamad Sabu, more popularly known as Mat Sabu, reckons that voters in the east Malaysian state will have to make a complete turnaround compared to the last election to allow the opposition to march into Putrajaya.

While confident that Pakatan Rakyat would do even better in Peninsular Malaysia compared to the 2008 general election, the popular and down-to-earth PAS leader said Sabah voters would either swing it the opposition’s way or help maintain the status quo.

Poser over RM40m for Sabah Umno

By Luke Rintod of FMT

The highly reputed Hong Kong ICAC has washed its hands
off the RM40 million Musa Aman 'matter' and even
retracted its probe application with the Swiss Court.

KOTA KINABALU: The Umno-led Barisan Nasional government’s attempt to “clear” Sabah Chief Minister Musa Aman of allegations of money laundering after some RM40 million had floated up out of nowhere, has raised more questions of how political parties are funded, said State Reform Party (STAR).

The party’s deputy chairman, Daniel John Jambun, said many are now questioning the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Nazri Aziz’s statement as to why businessman Michael Chia “contributed” a whopping RM40 million to Sabah Umno.

Nazri yesterday said that Attorney-General Abdul Gani Patail had found “no elements of corruption” from the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) probe on Musa regarding the RM40 million, which Chia was caught with red-handed in Hong Kong in 2008 as he was about to fly to Malaysia.

Anwar shadows Najib to drum change for Sabah

By Luke Rintod of FMT

Umno and BN leaders know that there is little love
lost in Sabah for the ruling coalition as people
continue to feel the effects of higher prices.

KOTA KINABALU: Wherever Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak goes, the silhouette of a senior Pakatan Rakyat leader is never too far away from him and the same will happen when he visits Sabah this weekend.

Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim is due in Sabah this Friday on a weekend visit a day ahead of a two-day visit by the premier who will be in the state to shore up support for his Barisan Nasional coalition.

However, while the state administration has announced Najib’s itinerary in Penampang, Kundasang and Kudat, Anwar’s visit is lower-profile.

According to PKR vice president Tian Chua, he will accompany Anwar this Friday to visit the interior Sabah parliamentary districts of Keningau, Tenom and Pensiangan.

Sabah BN will win seats ‘by default’

Some analysts in Sabah believe that as many as 20 seats,
including five or six parliamentary seats, could go to
BN as a result of a split in opposition votes.

By Luke Rintod of FMT

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah is set to see multi-cornered fights in most areas in the coming general election. This means that the ruling Barisan Nasional may have the edge.

At this stage, observers can conclude that the opposition parties in Sabah are giving Umno-led BN a “free advantage” to retain a majority of the Sabah seats.

At stake in Sabah are 26 parliamentary seats, including one in Labuan, and 60 state seats.

Sabah chairman of State Reform Party (STAR), Jeffrey Kitingan, said recently that his party is all but ready to announce the seats – parliamentary and state – it will contest.