Kota Kinabalu: The verbal exchange between a Sabahan and the Prime Minister at the Gaya Street Sunday Fair reflects the anger of ordinary Sabahans over the unfair treatment of the Federal Government towards Sabah.
“The Gaya Street encounter is an early warning to the thousands of campaigners from peninsula who are reported to be coming to Sabah to help their parties and candidates in the election campaign,” said SAPP President Datuk Seri Yong Teck Lee.
He described the Prime Minister’s response during the street encounter to a political own goal by the team captain.
“As the PM is at the highest level of both party and government, his words have the highest authority of government.
“So, the question of whether the Federal Government will appeal the High Court judgement on the 40 per cent claim or not has already been answered.
He said the most striking and revealing remark of Datuk Seri Anwar was “40pc of what?”“The 40pc formula has been around ever since 1963. PMX was in the 1990s and is now again the Finance Minister.
In fact, the PM (when he was in the opposition in 2006) had given his forward in the book Justice For Sabah by Dr Jeffrey Kitingan. That book spelt out the 40pc claim, in English and Bahasa Melayu,” said Yong.
In recent years, Sabah has repeatedly pursued the 40pc claim. The Sabah Law Society legal action has also stated the formula of the 40pc claim.
“How is it that the PM cum Finance Minster still doesn’t know what the 40pc is about? Yong asked.