PENAMPANG: Parti Warisan President Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal had no intention of demeaning the Murut community, or any community in Sabah, when using the word ‘kafir’ during a recent speech.
“There was a slip of the tongue when the word ‘kafir’ was uttered. He immediately corrected himself and clarified that he meant ‘Christian’.
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“In the video clip Shafie, at the end of his speech, apologised openly,” said Loganathan Jasper, a Penampang member.
He said Shafie acknowledged that he might have spoken too strongly and expressed sincere regret if any of his words had caused offence.
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He added this reflects Shafie’s humility and willingness to take responsibility and criticised attempts by Upko to politicise the incident for “cheap political mileage”.
“This is regrettable, especially given their (Upko’s) own record of betrayal against Sabahans,” Jasper said, referring to Upko’s broken promise on the 40pc net revenue entitlement without apology.
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He reminded Sabahans of Upko’s promise during the 2022 General Election when, as part of Pakatan Harapan (PH), the party promised not to withdraw Sabah’s lawsuit against the Federal Government regarding the 40pc net revenue entitlement.
“Upko assured Sabahans that even if PH formed the Government, the lawsuit would proceed. Yet, when PH came to power, Upko betrayed this promise by withdrawing the suit.
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“This is not just a broken promise, it is outright deception,” he said.
He stressed that the 40pc net revenue entitlement is not a political slogan but a constitutional right under the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) and urged Sabahans to focus on the real issue, i.e. restoring Sabah’s rights.
“The real issue is not a slip of the tongue that has already been clarified and apologised for, but the betrayal of our constitutional rights under MA63.
“We will not be distracted. Our commitment remains firm: to hold the Federal Government accountable and to restore Sabah’s rights.”
Sri Tanjong Assemblyman cum party Deputy Information Chief Justin Wong said during Shafie’s tenure as Chief Minister, he treated all races fairly as Warisan government policies covered all Sabahans.
“Every race received protection, every religion was given attention and every belief was respected. This is an undeniable fact,” he said.
He, too, referred to Upko’s “betrayal” on the 40pc issue. “That is the real betrayal. Should not Upko and PH apologise to Sabahans?” he asked.
Read more on Daily Express Sabah
