SABAHANS IN PENINSULAR MAKE A STAND.

FOR THE FIRST TIME, Sabahans working in the Klang Valley met to make a collective stand on living conditions here. I spent yesterday afternoon listening to them at a forum organised by the DAP.

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Speakers at this meeting included PKR President Kak Wan, Dr Maria, Teresa Kok, and Lim Kit Siang. At the end of the three hour dialogue this RESOLUTION was adopted:

RESOLUTION of first meeting of Sabahans in Klang Valley in Petaling Jaya on Sunday, July 4, 2010:

The first meeting of Sabahans in the Klang Valley held in Petaling Jaya on Sunday, July 4, 2010 to discuss specifically the problems of Sabahans stranded in Klang Valley and generally the concerns, grievances and frustrations of Sabahans 47 years in Malaysia RESOLVES as follows:

1. EXPRESS grave concern at the socio-economic plight of Sabahans stranded in the Klang Valley to the extent that homeless Sabahans had to scavenge for food from garbage bins outside restaurants in the Klang Valley or depend on food served by NGOs;

2. EXPRESS grave distress at the spectrum of outstanding political, economic, socio-economic-cultural and citizenship woes of Sabahans, including:

o the long-standing problem of illegal immigrants in Sabah, causing the Sabah population to multiply from some 400,000 during the formation of Malaysia in 1963 to over three million

o Poverty in Sabah – instead of eradication of poverty in Sabah as promised by Barisan Nasional in 2000, Sabah has the highest poverty rate in the country.

o Shocking backwardness in the development of basic infrastructures in Sabah whether roads, piped water, electricity and broadband to Sabahans.

o Denial and discrimination against the rights of Sabahans with regard to 20% instead of just 5% oil royalty payment to Sabah government.

3. NOTES that the New Economic Model had pinpointed the basic failure of Malaysian nation-building which is not only undermining 1Malaysia nation-building and the transformation of Malaysia into a progressive, just and internationally competitive nation when it admitted why Malaysia is losing out in the international competitive stakes and stressed: “Malaysia must be seen by its people and by others as a land of equal opportunity to earn a good living and provide a secure, happy life for each individual and the family”. It is this failure in the past 47 years of Malaysian nation-building to make Sabahans feel that they have an equal place under the Malaysian sun, and that Malaysia is “a land of equal opportunity to earn a good living and provide a secure, happy life for each individual and the
family” that have made Sabahans feel strangers not only in Malaysia but in their native homeland in Sabah.

4. CALLS on the Federal and Sabah state governments, and where relevant the Selangor state government, to undertake a total transformation of their policies to address and resolve the long-standing political, educational, socio-economic-cultural and citizenship woes of Sabahans or all the talk of 1Malaysia and making Sabah as “one of the most liveable places and a leading economic region in Asia” will remain empty platter.

5. CALLS for a Royal Commission of Inquiry on how the dreams and aspirations of Sabahans and Sarawakians in forming Malaysia in 1963 had been fulfilled or betrayed in the past five decades.

A 6th resolution was proposed and unanimously adopted, i.e. TO ALLOW POSTAL VOTING FOR SABAHANS WHO CANNOT RETURN HOME TO VOTE DUE TO FINANCIAL OR WORK CONSTRAINTS.

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COMMENTS BY SABAHANS

-Sabahans have always been very tolerant in practically every aspect in their daily lives.And it is because of this tolerance,Sabahans have
been oppressed by the current regime.Crying over the past is not going
to help,we must stand up and tell UMNO/BN,"YOU ARE HISTORY COME THE 13TH GE".

-My dear fellow Sabahan,,let me ask you this question and let it sink deeply in your heart before you answer my question. "How long you want to live in poverty and let these UMNO rules you state?" Do you know that we are beggars in our own state and we are being robbed by UNMO of all our wealth..Our land being sold to f...oreigners....So decide from now, if you still want UMNO in Sabah?

-Who will decide for our future,the future of our generation and our state??? The UMNO or ourselves??? Think about it...

AND THE PM HAS THE LAST SAY?

Sabah Times: “I have not made any decision about anything … Leave it to me to decide what is best for Sabah,” the Prime Minister told reporters after conducting a walkabout at the Lido Market along Jalan Penampang here last week.