KOTA KINABALU – After criticising the former Warisan-led state government’s efforts, leaders of the current Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) administration have themselves been accused of basking in the glory of their predecessor’s initiatives.
Datuk Junz Wong (Tanjung Aru-Warisan) cited at the state assembly yesterday three examples of GRS claiming credit for work started during Warisan’s 26-month rule together with Pakatan Harapan (PH) and Upko until they were defeated in the state polls in September last year.
Congratulating the GRS government for recently obtaining authority on deep-sea fishing licensing, Wong said the move towards this was pushed when he was the state agriculture minister in the former government.
Wong, a Warisan vice-president, noted that this was part of the 17 of 21 state rights demanded from the federal government when it was under PH from May 2018 to February last year.
“Another instance: there have been parties accusing the previous government of corruption over the RM300 million AirAsia loan, but after several months several parties in the (present) government have claimed credit for the effort and launched the AirAsia Hub,” he said in his budget debate speech.
He said the hub, an e-commerce platform, was initially called “Ourfarm” during Warisan’s time, and was rebranded to “airasia farm” by GRS when it came to power.
Wong also said GRS took credit for the 5% sales tax on petroleum products that was implemented in April 2020 during the Warisan administration.
The same goes with the return of the Sipadan and Ligitan islands off Sabah’s eastern coast from the federal government to the state’s control, he said.
“All of these were part of the Warisan-led government’s efforts, but today GRS has put its name on them and is reaping the benefits,” he said.
‘Don’t just talk, bring investors’
Meanwhile, Ben Chong (Tanjong Kapor-Warisan) took a swipe at the GRS government, calling on its leaders to make good on their talk about bringing in many investors.
He said the government should invite potential investors to build factories in rural areas so as to benefit many of the jobless rural folks.
He also proposed that investors build a better port in Kudat to help the northern district in Sabah come out of the country’s list of poverty-stricken districts.
Chong expressed doubt on how Sabah is able to table a surplus budget when all other states in Malaysia are announcing a deficit budget.
“I observed that almost all the states in Malaysia announced a deficit budget. It is more realistic at this point of time as the country is still in the process of economic recovery.
“But maybe Sabah would be able to generate more revenue given that it is rich in natural resources and is the main producer of oil in Malaysia,” he said during his Sabah budget debate speech yesterday.
The state announced a RM4.596 billion budget for next year with a surplus of RM110.68 million last Friday. – The Vibes, December 8, 2021
