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KOTA KINABALU – Sabah Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Seri Jeffrey Kitingan has accused Warisan president Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal of misrepresenting the controversial carbon trade deal, which is dogged by allegations of a lack of transparency and due diligence.
The founding president of Sabah Star, which is part of the ruling Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS), claimed that the attack by Shafie – who was chief minister from May 2018 to September 2020 – against him over the issue is intended to manipulate the people’s emotions.
Shafie had yesterday rubbished Kitingan’s statement in a report published by Al Jazeera that the Nature Conservation Agreement (NCA) had been debated and approved in the Sabah legislative assembly.
Kitingan was quoted as saying by Al Jazeera that he does not believe “bad press” will affect the NCA as it has already been debated and approved by Sabah’s legislative assembly.
Sale or lease? Kitingan grills Shafie on accusations against govt
In a statement today, Kitingan was critical of Shafie’s remarks – but the former did not confirm the statement quoted by Al Jazeera on the NCA being passed by the Sabah assembly.
“First, he accused the government of selling two million hectares of land to foreigners. Now, he is saying it is a lease,” Kitingan said of Shafie.
“He knew that the words flowing out of his lips were lies, but he did it nevertheless.”
Kitingan reiterated that the NCA is meant for forest conservation, allowing Singapore-based company Hoch Standard Pte Ltd to trade idle carbon, and realising the monetary value of carbon through science.
He said Hoch Standard will find bidders who could offer the best price for the state.
GRS’ present formula trumps Warisan’s previous one, ‘unthinkable’ to cancel deal: Kitingan
Kitingan also claimed that when Shafie was serving as chief minister, he was working on the same carbon deal “but was unable to finish it because Warisan lost the election.”
“Warisan even organised a seminar on the subject. It was officiated by Shafie’s deputy chief minister Datuk Seri Madius Tangau,” he added.
Kitingan revealed that under the Warisan carbon deal, Shafie has agreed to a 51-49 formula, with 51% for the government and 49% for the company.
The current NCA agreed by the GRS government dwarfed Shafie’s deal because it stipulates a 70:30 distribution of profits, he said.
Kitingan said it would be unthinkable for the GRS government to cancel and stop the NCA as suggested by Shafie due to this arrangement.
Shafie wrong in assessing companies’ capabilities, failed to consider firm’s connectivity: Kitingan
Kitingan also said that Shafie is wrong in assessing the capability of companies, saying that “the conventional way failed to include the company’s connectivity and network, as well as the company’s shareholders and directors, or the existence of a special purpose company or vehicle”.
“I advise Shafie to cease lying, since it is harmful to everyone. He and his followers should focus more on their own political party.
“GRS is doing everything it can to develop Sabah, and we are concentrating on rebuilding our economy at this difficult time – an economy that Shafie and Warisan had willy-nilly driven to the ground during their 27 months in office,” he alleged.
Kitingan added that cancelling the agreement will pose setbacks to the state after months of hard work and delay its plans.
“We don’t want to manage and run Sabah the way the previous governments did.
“How can we expect different results if we keep using the same strategy that has been proven to be ineffective?” – The Vibes, February 4, 2022
