DOMESTIC Trade and Costs of Living Minister Datuk Armizan Mohd Ali, who is also Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) Deputy Secretary-General, said opposition Parti Warisan’s Kota Belud Member of Parliament has yet to explain why she was quiet when it accepted RM53 million as interim payment pending settlement of the 40 per cent tax revenue when it was part of the Federal Government.
He said it was the new GRS-led State Government that actually saved Sabah by rejecting the sum agreed to by Warisan in October 2019.
“When GRS took the reins, Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor straight away wrote a revocation letter and demanded a larger sum.
“As a result, we got RM125 million in 2020 and now in 2023, the amount is RM300 million. Who exactly is the saviour here?” he told a press conference in Kota Kinabalu on Dec 17.
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He said Sabah would never prosper when politicians are only good at rhetoric. All the current political players have either been in State or Federal Governments and their track records are there for the public to see.
“Let the public judge for themselves what they have done,” he said.
Referring to Warisan’s new slogan of “Save Sabah, Prosper the People”, Armizan said no Sabah Government ever gave free homes to the people until the Rumah Mesra SMJ initiative was launched by Hajiji in 2022.
“Twenty units for every State constituency and the programme will continue next year. There was no such effort during Warisan but depended on Federal handouts. So who truly prospers the people, Warisan or GRS?
He said GRS is not bothered with whatever jargon or slogan Warisan uses in their struggle because attaining results is what the GRS-Pakatan Harapan State Government partnership is about.
“We want to prove to the people that we can solve the perennial problems plaguing Sabah,” said Armizan.
Earlier, Armizan said subsidised flight tickets to Sabah, Sarawak as well as Labuan during this festive season is evident that the Government is committed to addressing the high cost of living.
As a second subsidy involving flight tickets, he said this was an emulation of the Flysiswa programme but not exclusive to students. Instead for all those planning to journey back for the Christmas celebration.
“The Government at the Cabinet meeting last Wednesday decided to provide a subsidy for flight tickets to Sabah, Sarawak and Labuan for Christmas which will be set from Dec 22 to 24 at a ceiling price of RM599 (excluding tax).
For tickets priced higher than RM599, excluding taxes and fees, the Government will cover the difference.
“This is an immediate implementation of a projek rintis (planned for next year).
The Government decided to implement it immediately for Christmas and will continue for Chinese New Year, Aidilfitri, Kaamatan and Gawai.
He also called on businesses against misappropriating subsidised items provided by the Government for the people.
The Ministry would not compromise with traders engaging in such behaviour and aggressively carry out enforcement to stop them using relevant laws such as the Control of Supplies Act, Consumer Protection Act and Price Control and Anti-profiteering Act.
“We don’t want leakages and misappropriations to occur to ensure that subsidies reach the intended target groups,” he said.
The Ministry began conducting an audit exercise in October on subsidised packet cooking oil and found incidents of leakages and misappropriations.
He said some traders were found to have repackaged the subsidised cooking oil in bottles before selling them at higher prices.
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