Batu Sumpah products soon – DAP

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KOTA KINABALU: DAP Sabah secretary Dr Edwin Bosi is happy to see that the government is doing something to the Batu Sumpah (Oath Stone) in Keningau.

“I learned from Tan Sri Joseph Kurup, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department that the Batu Sumpah will not only be relocated to a better site where it will be viewed by the general public but also to be made a heritage site.

“I share the sadness expressed by Kurup of not only the missing original plague but also the missing three words “Kerajaan Malaysia Jamin” on the new replacement plague.

“I have made a police report on this missing original plague and for the police to investigate who is the culprit that changed the plague and removed the three words.

“I hope the police will get to the bottom of this matter and put a close to this sad episode. The law must take its course and whoever has tampered with the plague and removing the three words must face the music.”

Dr Bosi, who is Kapayan Assemblyman, is equally happy to note of Kurup’s statement concerning the Batu Sumpah when he said that the oath stone is the only form of acceptance known in the world where an indigenous community’s response towards the formation of a new nation are finally secured after their wishes to have them demand cast in stone were met.

“I would like to remind Kurup about their demand that there is religious freedom in Sabah, land under the Sabah government control and that the native customs and traditions are respected and preserved are not an agreement but a guarantee made by the government of Malaysia.

Dr Bosi, who is chairman of DAP Sabah Native Consultative Council, is surprised to know that the KDM and Kurup himself were very offended by the erection of the replicas of the Batu Sumpah.

Let me assure Kurup that the erection of the Batu Sumpah is to propagate not just to highlight the significance of the oath stone but also the guarantees made by the Malaysian government to the natives of Sabah.

Kurup is concerned about ritual. “We have left it to the land owners where the Batu Sumpah are erected to decide if they want to have bobohizan, chicken sacrifice or just prayers. For example in the case of Kg Moyog, the owner requested that prayer be said after the stones were unveiled followed by the reading of the guarantees in various native languages, namely Kadazandusun, Murut and Rungus.”

“We have also included a translation of the guarantees into English and Chinese beside the native languages.”

Dr Bosi said he disagreed with Kurup that DAP violated the third point of the oath stone in respect to native customs and traditions.

First it is Kurup and the BN government that have shown disrespect to the Batu Sumpah by not fulfilling the spirit of having an annual ritual.

They have quietly tried to forget their end of the bargain, keeping quiet and hoping that the Batu Sumpah will be forgotten as time goes by. Until and unless the culprit is found, Kurup and the BN government must be held responsible for the missing original plague and of a new plague without the three words “Kerajaan Malaysia Jamin”.

Dr Bosi said it is not sheer luck that DAP Sabah found out about the missing words but believe that we were led by certain “force” to unravelled the missing words.

“I would like to remind Kurup that the indigenous people have high reverence to the Batu Sumpah. They all know the consequences of not fulfilling ones side of the bargain or going against what have been promised and in this case, what have been guaranteed.

“I would like to inform Kurup that we have erected five Batu Sumpah in Keningau on 31 August 2014, Kg Kionsom Inanam (25 October 2014), Kg Mempulut Pensiangan (10 December 2014) and in Kg Moyog Penampang on 11 January 2015. We are now in the process of erecting the Batu Sumpah in Matunggung, Ranau and in Kg Terian Penampang within these three months. Very soon there will be replicas of the Batu Sumpah as paper weight, T-shirts, key-chains and so forth.

Contrary to what Kurup said, the natives and the people of Sabah and Malaysia are all talking about the Batu Sumpah.

“We have raised this issue in Parliament where the MP for Kota Kinabalu Jimmy Wong is now fondly called MP Batu Sumpah. In Sabah the natives are coming to see us to request Batu Sumpah to be planted in their villages. DAP Sabah’s campaign to erect Batu Sumpah in every villages in Sabah is building momentum. We are also expecting to erect Batu Sumpah in West Malaysia.”

“The Batu Sumpah is a national monument for without it there is no Malaysia. The whole nation must be aware of this oath stone. We have and we ask again that the Batu Sumpah is included in the school history text book.”

“Ultimately, we look at the Batu Sumpah and read the guarantees. Thus, the natives and the people of Sabah want to know whether their dreams and aspirations have been fulfilled after 51 years in Malaysia or otherwise. In this respect, a Royal Commission of Inquiry on the Batu Sumpah is proper and relevant,” he said.