Deal with all issues in family spirit to maintain harmony – Musa

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KOTA KINABALU: Malaysians in Sabah will continue to contribute towards nation building for the good of the country and people, said Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman.

It was also important for the people to work together to strengthen existing unity regardless of the different backgrounds, and ensure that the ties are fostered to prevent any issues that may hurt peace and harmony, Musa said in his Merdeka Day message.

“Whatever sensitive issues that may rise should be dealt with well as one big family. Positive values such as respect for one another and acceptance, as what has been preached under the 1Malaysia concept by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, must be absorbed as a culture for the good of our future,” he said.

As Malaysians, Musa said it was only right to be grateful to have Najib as a leader, who has great visions and aspirations to bring development and transformation to the nation so its people would benefit from it.

“The implementation of development initiatives such as the Government Transformation Programme (GTP) and the New Economic Model (NEM) move well with the mission. And the introduction of the National Key Result Area (NKRA) shows the government’s effort to overcome issues that are affecting the people’s life.

“In this context, the Sabah government will continue to show its full commitment and support to the federal government to realise the initiatives because the people’s needs are our priority,” he said, adding that Malaysians in Sabah are lucky to join in the nation’s 56th Merdeka Day and 50 years Sabah in Malaysia on Sept 13.

He attributed the development in Sabah to the implementation of Sabah Halatuju and the Sabah Development Corridor (SDC), as well as programmes under the 10th Malaysia Plan.

“These programmes are carried out to improve the livelihood of the hardcore poor in the state. We hope to reduce poverty in Sabah in stages through these programmes by committing ourselves to beef up development activities, the human capital, while protecting our nature and natural resources,” he said.

“The people’s continued trust on the Sabah Barisan Nasional is reflected through the victory in the 13th general election. This is vital to ensure continued political stability in the state. So it is important for the BN leaders to continue going down to the ground to listen to the people’s needs and problems,” he said.

Since independence, Malaysians from all levels have benefited from the development programmes. Therefore Musa urged the people to continue contributing positively, regardless of their background, race and religion.

“The government will continue to be committed in driving the country to be a high income nation.”

Having said that, Musa also reminded the people to give thanks to the fallen heroes who sacrificed their lives to protect the country.

“They are the ones who fought for our independence, and us, as the post-independence generation should appreciate the sacrifices with great responsibilities,” he said, adding that the same appreciation is also channeled to the security forces who had tirelessly worked hard to maintain peace in Malaysia.

Special thanks go to those who served during Ops Daulat following the stand-off in Kampung Tanduo, Lahad Datu and Kampung Simunul in Semporna.