Jeffrey’s take on Sabah Chinese ‘unfair’

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KOTA KINABALU: A significant part of Sabah’s development and progress over the last 150 years or so can be attributed to its Chinese community, said State Assembly Deputy Speaker Datuk Johnny Mositun.

Speaking in his personal capacity, Mositun stressed that to say otherwise is not only incorrect and unfair but can also be considered a denial of facts.

It was not totally right to label Sabah’s Chinese community as one that was only interested in doing business and not interested in protecting the state’s political rights and interests, he said.

“Generalisation like this is grossly unfair and not based on the facts. It is true that the Chinese community is hard working and business-minded, but that is not to the exclusion of politics and the state’s welfare,” Mositun, who is also Parti Bersatu Sabah secretary general, said when met at the launch of the Chinese New Year Carnival at Lintasan Deasoka here Saturday.

He said it was a natural phenomenon that the majority Bumiputera communities would be at the forefront of Malaysian politics because of historical, cultural and social realities.

“But that does not necessarily imply that non-Bumiputera communities are reluctant or unwilling to engage in politics. The facts prove otherwise. Just look at the number of non-Bumiputera based political parties in the country and the state,” he said.

Mositun said the local Chinese community was at the forefront of opposition to the Japanese when Imperial Japanese forces occupied North Borneo (Sabah) during World War II.

“And they paid a terrible price for that. How can anyone now say that our fellow Sabahan Chinese don’t care about our state. Even when the formation of Malaysia was first proposed, the Chinese community clearly voiced out its concerns and demands for constitutional safeguards for Sabah. Clearly, anyone who believes the Chinese community in Sabah is indifferent to preserving and protecting state rights is either misled or mistaken,” Mositun said.

Mositun said his own party, PBS, had a large Chinese and Sino-KDM membership that played a very important role in party affairs and maintaining the party’s strength and influence in state politics.

“Just see what happened in Sabah in GE13. Even the opposition acknowledges the fact that a significant swing in Chinese votes helped it win in many urban constituencies. So what is the logic behind the contention that the Chinese are not concerned about Sabah’s rights and interest? I cannot subscribe to such a preposterous suggestion,” Mositun said.