Kota Kinabalu: Warisan Information Chief Datuk Mohd Azis Jamman fired back at accusations regarding a mining licence, claiming the allegations are meant to distract the public from corruption issues within the Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) government.
“The accusations against Warisan are simply attempts to shift attention away from corruption allegations currently facing the GRS government,” said Azis in a statement.
The dispute centres on a document from Jan 31, 2019, which has been circulating online.
Azis clarified that the document was merely an acknowledgement letter confirming receipt of an application from the company and not an approval for mining operations.
“This was just a standard response letter that government departments send when they receive applications. It was not an approval,” Azis said.
Former Hasil Bumi Secretary Datuk Mohd Salleh Abbas supported this, saying that the letter was simply part of normal government procedure to acknowledge receipt of correspondence.
Azis said the actual mining licence for the company was only granted on Jan 20, 2025, under the current GRS administration and not during Warisan’s time in power.
“If GRS really opposed this mining application, why did they approve it five years later? Azis said.
He called for transparency regarding who owns the company, who pushed for the licence approval and who stands to benefit from the mining operations.
Azis challenged the GRS government to release all documents related to the approval, including environmental impact reports and details about company ownership.
“If the GRS government has nothing to hide, they should make all these documents public and let Sabahans decide for themselves,” he said.