No room for racial, religious discord in Sabah – Musa

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KOTA KINABALU: Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman has cautioned that there was no room for racial bigotry and religious discord in Sabah.

“I pray that the prevailing harmony we have here (in Sabah) will remain intact.

“We can stand proud as Malaysians, having achieved great strides since independence with the commitment of citizens that comes from diverse backgrounds.

“There is much that we have in common and such traits allow us to continuously to cement ties and uphold unity and harmony, which serve as pillars of progress,” he said yesterday in his message in conjunction with this year’s Chinese New Year celebrations.

“As we enter the Year of the Monkey, I look forward to extending greetings at open houses hosted in conjunction with the Chinese New Year. Visiting one another during festivities has become an accepted culture among Malaysians from all walks of life.”

Musa reckoned that there was room for everyone to practise their respective traditions and faiths, and “let us strive to always respect one another and overcome differences through amicable ways.”

He said over the past year, we have continued to see efforts by irresponsible quarters to undermine unity that Malaysians, especially our forefathers, have worked hard to build.

“Matters get worse when those who instigate Malaysians to be suspicious of one another are able to use social media platforms to get their views across.

“We must remain vigilant and not allow ourselves to be drawn into actions that may lead to unnecessary tension, especially when these issues are related to race and religion,” he cautioned.

Touching on the state’s economy, Musa who also is the State Finance Minister said economic growth was vital to Sabah’s long term growth prospects.

“As we all know, the past few months have been challenging with the weakening Ringgit against the US Dollar, a problem that is also plaguing several other countries.

“More recently, the drop in the price of oil has also impacted projected revenue and certain projects will face the impact of this. This is a situation that we must face together as a nation.

“I call on Malaysians in Sabah to be united in supporting measures we are taking both at state level and those taken by the federal government to cushion impacts from the phase we are going through now,” he stressed.

Musa assured that despite some setbacks,  Sabah is committed to ensuring the implementation of the Sabah Development Corridor and the State Development Agenda, or Halatuju.

He said Sabah was also supportive of the Government Transformation Programme (GTP) and Economic Transformation Programme (ETP) which were showing positive results on the ground.

“Tourism is still an important contributor to the local economy despite some challenges in terms of security. We are also seeing a number of Chinese tourists and other travellers from the north Asian region visiting Sabah.

“I wish to also take this opportunity to assure the business and trade community that the Sabah government is aware of issues raised by chambers of commerce and other groups from time to time.

“We are doing our best to meet requests and suggestions and where possible, these are implemented as part of our efforts to find workable solutions and to facilitate economic growth.

“Despite some budget cuts, we will ensure that the best is done for all citizens. The government is mindful of the rising cost of goods and services,” he said, adding that the state government was doing its best to address the issues and problems affecting the livelihood of the people.

In conjunction with the festive celebration, Musa gave his reassurance that the Chinese community in Sabah (would get) continuous support towards the development and growth of Chinese schools, temples and cultural activities. The Sabah state government will continue to disburse financial aid for Chinese schools and temples.

“We also support Chinese non-governmental organisations that work towards advancing education and welfare activities. We recognise that education is very important to the Chinese community and we will continue to assist where possible.”

On security, he said it was of paramount importance in attracting investors and driving the economy, especially one that focused on tourism.

He said the Eastern Sabah Security Command (ESSCom) and the Eastern Sabah Security Zone (ESSZone) were now entering their third year and after further streamlining, both efforts were now on firmer footing.

He said measures such as the curfew at sea were meant to beef up security, and called on the public to be supportive of the efforts.

“The public must also do their part by informing us of suspicious activities.

“I also wish to thank security forces on duty during festive seasons, sacrificing family time to maintain peace and order,” he said, adding “during this festive season, let us remember the less fortunate.”