Memorandum to Prime Minister for serious actions in Sabah

13Friday · Post time 11-12-2007 11:26 PM

Memorandum to Prime Minister for serious actions in Sabah
Introduction
Consumers Association of Sabah & Labuan FT (CASH) is very concerned about our general well being in Sabah and Labuan further aggravated by the recent price hikes due mainly to the unexpected abnormal fuel subsidies adjustments within a few years following the rising world market price of crude oil in recent years. The drastic upward fuel adjustment costs mean that imported manufactured goods from the Peninsula Malaysia have undergone across the board rises of up to double the previous level prior to that fuel adjustment. The tolls hike in Peninsula Malaysia has also inevitably impact the adverse price increases of manufactured goods and services from there.
Economy in Sabah & crippling price hike
The situation in Sabah has become worst off when the retention of our domestic economy within Sabah is rather weak as wealth generated in Sabah have been siphoned off elsewhere.
While substantial Sabahans are struggling with their restricted income from the private sector as employees and small business operators in a diminishing economy, the employees in the Civil service had been given hefty rise in 2007 resulting in the general increases in many goods especially basic necessary daily items. Despite price control enforced, goods and services continue to be affected by costs pushed price rises. Sabah does not have major employers in the private sector who can afford to pay matching salaries increments to catch up with the price hikes of most goods. Hence such workers are forced to survive on old salaries levels.
There are also other several groups on low income who are under employed, students, farmers and retired workers in the private sectors without pension and dwindling savings without land in the urban areas. The contribution - past and present - of such groups of people cannot be taken for granted or ignored when times are difficult to make ends meet. Malnutrition and lack of adequate essential food items can present a different set of health problems for such people over a long period of time. Government needs to address such scenarios before permanent damages occur.
Despite pay rises for the civil servants recently, the delivery is still fall short of expectation to the consumers as it would appear money incentives via official pay rise would not be adequate motivation to improve in their public service instantly for known weaknesses. We may have first class infrastructure in many areas but some areas are very much lacking in even basic essential items. In some areas, we have observed that third class mentality have failed the consumers in the delivery system.
We have also observed that those Government concerns involved with monopoly activities are charging the public at rates of unreasonable increases in recent years. Many Government departments and their agencies are tempted to charge such high rates as the Government is switching over to e-Government hence consumers are forced to pay up for such essential services.
While the whole nation is loaded with much disparities in many spheres of activities, such wide disparities unless addressed accordingly are hindering real national development on an equal footing. There are regional disparities within the Peninsula Malaysia as only a few states are economically capable while other states there had been given much financial attention but remain backward. Migration of workers for jobs in few economic capable states is one of the reasons for seasonal travels of 'balik kampong' when costly road accidents and deaths are very high.
There is known disparities in economic and social activities within the nation vis-a-vis Peninsula Malaysia and the Borneo States. Sabah only got its first full national University in 1994 after more than 30 years of independence and even this varsity benefit all students in Malaysia. Many Sabahans still have to leave home for education in other national universities and overseas. Many educated Sabahans are dispersed throughout the world resulting in brain drain as local opportunities are given to many foreigners of unknown quality. Sabah deserves special attention.
CASH would like to draw your special attention in the following fundamental areas namely:-
Security & Sovereignty
1 We know that over the years since independence, genuine local people are declining by migrating elsewhere in pursuit of jobs and opportunities while outsiders including illegal immigrants are encouraged to come to Sabah and given genuine identity cards so much so that dubious citizens (extra people IC or EPIC) have outnumbered the local people. We have submitted to the DYMM YDP Agong and the Prime Minister for a Royal Commission of Inquiry on the illegal people in Sabah in January 2007 after lodging a Police Report on the Project IC /Project Mahathir in June 2006, but we have yet to hear of the action of that. We have also lodged a Police Report on the security & sovereignty of Sabah in February 2007 over the much neglected Claim on Sabah by Manila when there is no justification of that claim.
Basic infrastructure
By moving around Sabah, we have observed that for 44 years, our basic infrastructure in all 60 State constituencies of the 25 Parliamentary areas are still lacking for the people despite claims of much financial allocations especially since 1994. Many rural areas still have to rely on the candles for the light at night while water, education, health facilities, and roads are in need of much desired upgrading.
Elected Representatives
From our survey, all elected representatives have failed in their election promises likely for the sole reason that they do not need to perform and yet to be elected again taking advantage of the bias machinery, money, media and the illegal people or dubious citizens to remain in power. Amongst the 18 Police Reports worth a few Trillions Ringgit, Joshua Kong has lodged two Police Reports on the General Election 2004 as extended to the Anti Corruption Agency (ACA) and the Election Commission (EC) over the rigged election in the nation. Joshua Kong has also written a book " A case of victory- landslide or rigslide" on the GE 2004 with analysis of the official results of the Government Gazette on that. We need to address the quality of these elected representatives (past & present) in their involvement in corruption, illegalities and abuses of power when such people are of dubious origin and so the presentation of birth certificates is desirable as one of the basic reasons for them to continue their offices.

(Part 1 0f 2)

13Friday · Post time 11-12-2007 11:27 PM

Key senior Government & Public Servants

Since independence, Sabah has been dominated by the rule of outsiders and foreigners to the degradation of the State as we now realise that such people have been unpatriotic in their dealing with the interests and poor attitudes in managing the State and unsatisfied and irresponsible performances are blamed on the genuine local people. The minimum effort that we can do now is to address this anomaly by holding a Royal Commission of Inquiry in conjunction of the same on the Project IC. Meanwhile all key Government appointees be required to present their birth certificates to clear beyond doubt the originality of the important people given the responsibility to handle local interests. It is great injustice for illegal people or dubious citizens to make the lopsided decisions for the State as dubbed as Tsunami of Illegals & Illegalities.

Wealth & resources

We have to be reminded that our wealth and natural resources are dwindling fast for the past few decades and there are enough unresolved land issues to worry the local people. While the oil palm plantations are owned by outsiders as much as 85% and the bulk of the workers in these plantations are foreigners, Sabah continues to face the massive financial leakage.

The fear now before the nation and in particular Sabah is that when such State wealth as lost not easily re-generable, we may face tremendous hardship when the challenges and threats are aplenty. Sabah does not have much valuable financial investments to fall back on in times of needs to tackle our basic needs including imported foods especially rice.

Crimes against humanity in Sabah

It is unfortunate that due to various conflicts in Sabah, we have ourselves to blame for this mismanagement of our affairs in Sabah vis-a-vis Malaysia that the Government has on purpose and neglect committed crimes against humanity in Sabah in two counts namely ethnic cleansing and undeclared apartheid.

Ethnic Cleansing

In reality ethnic cleansing has occurred when the illegal people including dubious citizens have outnumbered the genuine local people by simply displacement of the local people with outsiders when the percentage of the Muslim people had risen from about 30% in 1963 to 60% in 2000. Normal conversion is too small to effect that sharp rising trend and that abnormal trend is the illegal 'import' of EPIC or unjustified quality and quantity of cultural inferior people to warrant the classification in the occurrence of ethnic cleansing without the need to compare our scenario with that of the irreversible Bosnia and elsewhere where killings took place. Sabah is on the threshold of the worst as far as crimes of all sort unheard of in the years prior to 1963. The diagnosis of paralysis of crisis arising on the ethnic cleansing is not disputable. We need to deal with that when the impotent sitting Governments (Federal & State) always turns blind eyes and deaf ears on this existence of this crime against the local people even when the cries for justice for Sabah were so loud since 2006. The impression of the Government is that it is too late for them to deal with.

Undeclared Apartheid

The other twin evil of the crimes against humanity is unfortunate for Sabah is the undeclared apartheid when the substance of that is obvious in the system of New Economic Policy (expired yet extended) bias for the race and religion as far as bumiputra is concerned. In Sabah it is a mixture of lopsided politics of cronyism where a small group have taken much advantage of NEP when several native groups are not considered bumiputra in the implementation of NEP policies. It is further aggravated by the fact that outsiders including illegal people or dubious citizens have been accorded the status of bumiputra by virtue of possession of questioned identity cards under project IC. The undeclared apartheid has taken its tolls on the local people of non Muslims in all areas of activities with the most noticeable development that the Civil service and the Government linked companies is dominated by a single group.

Conclusion

CASH would like to share the good news around Sabah but it is impossible in this kind of background when the widening gaps are aplenty vis-a-vis the nation and the sub-regions within Sabah as the implications of 50/44 years are worrying as far as the rights of Sabah and Sarawak as 1 in 4 rather than 1 in 13 in 1963 in the context of nationhood of Malaya and Malaysia as separate entities unlike United States of America as enlarged over the years after formation. The elaborate negotiations and the Malaysia Agreement just prior to 1963 bear testimony to separate entities.

We need to manage the gaps and disparities rather than sweep them under the deception that everything is alright when it is not so. Complacency and indifference are human weaknesses in any system and the worst would prevail when the bias system that is not working for 50/44 years in Malaya/Malaysia with so much expectations in 1963 must be over vamped. When cancer is the diagnosis, we are very likely to proceed to the funeral despite massive treatments. When a rotten system in diagnosed, a prescription of a changed new system is inevitable. Some may want to compare with the worse scenarios in other nations to justify our mismanagement just like the latest uncalled for comparison with Bosnia and others in allegation of ethnic cleansing. Malaysia was a party in the fight against the declared apartheid in South Africa and was jubilant when that evil was removed. Yet sadly, we have a similar undeclared devastating system in Malaysia in the very short history of nationhood.

In the era of globalisation and in the intense global competitive atmosphere, we need to instal a new system to move forward with new people at the helm. We want to achieve excellence, distinction and glory (gemilang, terbilang and cemerlang) and let this vision be handled by a new fundamental system of several races and various religions in a mixed ethnic society. A prime minister with a big ear must be seen to be listening and then walk the talk in line with tell me the truth even when the truth hurts. We want to work with a prime minister who is capable to adopt the best practices available (a separate memorandum) to reap the benefits for all for common good.

Prepared for CASH by Joshua Y. C. Kong, Deputy President of CASH - Kota Kinabalu 3rd December, 2007