KOTA KINABALU: Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Haji Aman yesterday reminded Bingkor assemblyman Datuk Jeffrey Kitingan to speak truthfully at the house.
“If your speech is reasonable, we are okay. There is no problem. But what we feel is that most of the facts provided by Bingkor are incorrect. He always talks about reviews. What is there to review in the Malaysian Federation?” said Musa when Jeffrey was giving his speech at the State Assembly sitting yesterday.
Musa said Jeffrey always talked about Sabah being sidelined by the Federal Government and that Sabah was a poor state.
“He has been a people’s representative how many times? How many parties has he been in? He was even a deputy minister at one time and during that time, he was very nice to the prime minister,” he said.
Musa said he was prompted to issue a reply to Jeffrey because the latter’s speech seemed to indicate that the leaders in Sabah were stupid and that they were not doing anything.
He said the State Government received millions in terms of provision from the federal government.
He said there were now six full ministers from Sabah in the Federal Government.
“They hold important portfolios,” he stressed.
As Jeffrey stood up, Musa told him to sit down, saying: “Sit, sit first. You sit down first. You only tell lies. What do you know? You were given a chance. You once led the Yayasan Sabah and what did you do? All this while, we didn’t bother about it, but when you speak of nonsense, I want to tell you that you mislead this house.”
To that, Jeffrey argued, “You don’t order me to sit down. How can you do that? This is the State Assembly.”
Musa continued: “You were given a chance. You once led the Yayasan Sabah and what did you do? All this while, we didn’t bother about it, but when you speak of nonsense, I want to tell you that you mislead this house.
“As the chief minister, I am constantly in contact with the prime minister requesting for projects to be given to the Sabah government worth millions.
“Are you aware how much we are spending on education? On health and on safety? You talk as if we get nothing from the federal government. You mislead the house. You think all the members are stupid? You were once a deputy minister…don’t think we are stupid as if we are sitting down here doing nothing and that you are the only one who is wise.
“I meet the prime minister every month. When I meet him, he listens to me; When I ask him, he gives to me. As the Chief Minister I have the privilege to see him, to meet him, to talk to him and to ask him. When I talk to the prime minister he listens…don’t mislead the house as if the prime minister does not care about Sabah. That is a lie and untrue. You are wrong. So don’t mislead this house.”
Musa also told Jeffrey that he was not angry with him.
He explained that the State still has power on its land, the immigration and the forest.
Jeffrey then asked Musa, who decides on the salaries of the people’s representatives in Sabah, whether it was true that the study to review the salaries and privileges given to them was not done as the State had to refer to the Federal Government.
To that, Musa replied, “What salary? I want to be prudent. This has nothing to do with KL because the money comes from the State Government.”
“I don’t mind that you like talking. I let you speak. With due respect you are unhappy and you are angry. But sometimes I have to make the clarification because what you are saying is untrue…you make as if we the state cabinet are the stooges. You are wrong, you insult us.
“As the chief minister, I am used to this. As a chief minister, I don’t have anything from the prime minister. As the chief minister, I don’t need to talk to the federal. You don’t know, I meet, I talk, I discuss, I ask,” said Musa.
Jeffrey then said, “You don’t like me because I am Jeffrey Kitingan.”
In reply, Musa said: “To me that is nothing to me. I don’t feel threatened with you. What I don’t like is you misleading this house, telling lies, and belittling the state cabinet. You don’t see the roads, the buildings. Be a gentleman. The way you talk is extreme as if nothing has been done.”
Musa, who said he was not angry with Jeffrey, invited the latter to see him so that he can be briefed as to how much money was distributed to the poor in Sabah, how much is spent on infrastructure and so on.