KOTA KINABALU – Former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak has mooted for the nation to replace the 40-year-old Look East Policy with one that focuses on Borneo.
He said this was because Sabah and Sarawak are a frontier with vast potential and should be developed by Barisan Nasional (BN).
“I felt the Look East Policy has run its full course and it is time for a new order in line with the world that has already changed.
“With the administrational centre of Indonesia moving to Kalimantan, if we want to develop, this is the area. This is the region. We must develop Sabah and Sarawak,” he said during the Sabah BN Convention held in Penampang today.
The Malaysian government adopted the Look East Policy in 1982 with the aim of bolstering social and economic development in Malaysia through learning from Japan.
However, Najib said the decades-old Look East Policy no longer brings any advantage to the nation, while a shift to Borneo will yield immense profits, as well as prosperity for the people in Sabah and Sarawak.
“Sabah and Sarawak have vast lands and the potential is huge, whereas Peninsular Malaysia has reached its maximum potential in terms of value and development,” he said.
He said Sabah can also become a major tourism destination, which is a large industry for the state.
Najib also said he had visited Da Nang in Vietnam, which has been transformed into a tourist attraction, and Sabah can follow suit.
He added that this was why he previously approved the allocation of RM250 million to build the Kota Kinabalu International Convention Centre.
“I even promised a bridge (to connect) Pulau Bum Bum, and I promised a bridge to connect Labuan to Kota Kinabalu.
“We could do these, not that we couldn’t. But the way (to do it) is by putting BN in Putrajaya. This is our commitment – we change,” he said.
Meanwhile, he said that BN must produce a new deal for Sabah in order to secure the federal seats in the state in the coming general election.
He said the new deal to be included in the manifesto must provide commitment and detailed planning to solve issues pertaining to basic infrastructures in the state – roads, rural roads, water, and electricity supply.
Najib also said the Sabah Pan Borneo Highway Project must be sped up after Pakatan Harapan’s “sin” of cancelling the development plan. – The Vibes, July 2, 2022
