SAPP challenged Umno leaders in Sabah

Kota Kinabalu: The Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) urged Umno leaders to "stop making use of the government machinery like the police and oppressive laws like the Internal Security Act (ISA)" to suppress freedom of speech in the country, Sabah in particular.

More so when the speech made contained an "inconvenient truth" that the present administration refused to accept, for reasons best known to it.



SAPP Information Chief Chong Pit Fah was responding to a police report lodged by an Umno leader in Tawau against former Suhakam Vice Chairman Tan Sri Simon Sipaun over his statement that life in Sabah was better prior to joining Malaysia in 1963.

The police report was made based on Sipaun's closing remarks at the inter-party dialogue cum leadership seminar organised by United Borneo Front (UBF) here last Saturday.

The said Umno Tawau leader called on Sipaun to retract the statement.

"Instead of constantly suppressing the people's right to speak and to highlight issues affecting the country using all kinds of high-handed tactics, Umno leaders should learn to confront criticisms more intelligently and rationally by discussing and debating them," Chong contended.

He challenged Umno leaders in the State to point out which part of Sipaun's statement was found to be offensive and creating confusion among the people.

Chong who was present during the dialogue-cum-seminar maintained that Sipaun, who is a former State Secretary, was speaking the truth based on his own experiences.

"This clearly shows that the BN government, Umno in particular can't handle the truth and are constantly in denial mode. We want to challenge the Sabah BN leaders, particularly Tan Sri Joseph Pairin Kitingan who is the longest serving Minister in Sabah to deny and at the same time point out which part of Sipaun's speech is instigating in nature."

Chong who is also SAPP Kepayan chief further said if none of the Sabah BN and Umno leaders could explicitly point out what is wrong in Sipaun's speech, they ought to publicly apologise to Sipaun.

Failing which, this would only reflect their sheer arrogance, ignorance and disrespect to the history of this country, especially the contributions of Sabah in forming the Federation of Malaysia back in 1963.

He also urged the public to listen to Sipaun's full speech which SAPP has uploaded onto its web TV sabahtv.net, to judge for themselves.

Source : Daily Express