KOTA KINABALU - The battle against Covid-19 has left Sabah’s one-month-old Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) government in disarray as tens of thousands of Sabahans are left in the lurch as to whether they would receive any state aid.
Sabah chief minister Hajiji Hj Noor had so far announced an RM260 million assistance package for targeted groups and this was met with widespread public backlash as many breadwinners struggled to put food on the table for their families.
Yesterday, around 10 men protested in Taman Semarak, Tawau after they were refused to go to a nearby shop to buy food due to the total lockdown imposed in their area.
The government had announced food assistance was only meant for the poor listed in the e-Kasih database and those ordered quarantined and their families.
A new mechanism was introduced to ensure only those affected by the pandemic would get aid, but many have claimed that they are yet to receive anything.
Opposition leaders claim this has been caused by weaknesses in the GRS-led Sabah state government and their inability to handle the situation.
“Well, one thing's for sure, a lot of people in Sabah have expressed their disappointments about the way the state government is handling the current conditional movement control order (CMCO).
“Clearly, what they were saying in the last election was that it will be much easier to help the people if the federal and state are on good terms.
“So, what is happening now?” said Warisan’s Sepanggar MP Datuk Aziz Jamman when asked his views on the GRS-led Sabah state government’s performance over the past one month.
“At least during the Warisan-led administration, you did not see people heading to the streets to protest,” he added.
The Warisan Plus government was ousted in the 16th Sabah election after 26 months in power by the GRS alliance on September 26.
The current government is aligned to the Perikatan Nasional (PN) federal government, which has already given the state RM50 million to help those affected by the pandemic.
Aziz said the action of the GRS government has meant that others like political groups and NGOs have had to step in and assist others in need of the much-needed assistance.
The Warisan youth chief also took a swipe at the federal ministers, saying they were only seen during the Sabah election campaign last month, but not a single one of them is in Sabah now.
Sabah DAP acting chairman Datuk Frankie Poon also echoed Azis sentiments, saying the GRS appears to have a serious lack of leadership and direction.
“Unfortunately, the Chief Minister was infected and warded in Hospital due Covid-19 for two weeks. After that nothing official was announced of his admission.
“He did not make any statement nor was anyone in his cabinet asked to represent him in dealing with the state affairs while he was admitted sick in the hospital. Was he on duty? It is unbecoming of a state leader to do so,” he said.
Poon also noted the new government lacks transparency as many Sabahans say the state has returned to the old Barisan Nasional (BN) era when former Sabah chief minister Tan Sri Musa Aman’s administration was shrouded in secrecy.
“The initial announcement of RM50 million to fight Covid-19 was not transparent; how did they disburse the allocation other than RM2 million to each red zone area.
“Still the food basket which was disbursed through the National Security Council (NSC) and the Welfare Department were too little, too late, and very slow,” he said while also questioning how the RM50 million federal donation and the latest allocation of RM160 million would be spent by the state government.
To date, Sabah’s community development and people wellbeing minister has distributed 104,209 food baskets in 24 Sabah districts Lahad Datu, Semporna, Kunak, Tawau, Sandakan, Kota Kinabalu,Penampang, Putatan, Papar, Tuaran, Kalabakan, Ranau, Tambunan, Kota Belud, Beaufort, Kuala Penyu, Kota Marudu, Tenom, Kinabatangan, Keningau, Kudat, Pitas, Sipitang dan Nabawan. - The Vibes Pic, October 30, 2020
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