The 2020 Sabah state general election is now coming to an end, and I provide a summary of a dozen reasons in the unprecedented state polls on Saturday, 26th September 2020 as to why the Warisan Plus slate of candidates should be fully supported. The dozen cases are:

1, There should not be a Sabah state general election. It as a plot gone wrong, which engineered the “frog jumping” of 13 Sabah State Assemblymen to capture and take-over the Sabah State Government and not to hold a Sabah state general election. But Shafie Apdal was one step ahead of the plotters and the political frogs – which is why there is a Sabah state general election. Sabah voters should prove that Shafie was for the second time ahead of the plotters in Sabah and Kuala Lumpur by solidly voting for Warisan Plus on Saturday to win with a two-thirds majority in Sabah State Assembly.

2. The unpreparedness of the Opposition, in particular Perikatan Nasional (PN) for a Sabah state general election – which is why the PN has no symbol and in the last-minute preparation for Sabah general election, PN could not come out with any symbol and could only use the letters of PN.

3. The most number of candidates with a total 447 candidates from 16 political parties and 56 independents vying for the 73 seats in the 16th Sabah state general election

There are multi-cornered fights in all the seats, the lowest being three-way battles and highest with 11 candidates vying for one seat, the Bengkoka seat in the Kudat parliamentary area. Among others, there are 15 five-way battles, 26 six-way battles, 13 seven-way battles, six eight-cornered fights and three nine-cornered ones.

4. Only Warisan Plus candidates have a consistent policy approach – to form the next State Government with Shafie Apdal as the Chief Minister, not just to win a simple majority of 37 seats but a two-thirds majority of at least 49 seats to deal a fatal blow to the culture of political frogs in Sabah and Malaysia.

The Prime Minister wants Hajiji Noor as the next Sabah Chief Minster, but Sabah UMNO does not agree. The people of Sabah will not be able to raise their heads high in Malaysia or anywhere in the world for the next five years if the foul-mouthed Bung Moktar who is very liberal with four-letters and established a dubious reputation as a MP who made derogatory utterances about women and their dignity and role becomes the Sabah Chief Minister.

5.The most important puppeteer in the Sabah state general election is not the Prime Minister or the respective chairman of the individual political parties in the Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) “alliance within an alliance”, but a faceless and nameless personality who is pulling all the strings directing the multitude of political frogs in Sabah.

6. The domination of Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) by leaders from Malaya like Hamzan Zainuddin, Bersatu Secretary-General and Home Minister and Azmin Ali.

7. The surrender by PBS of its sacred birthplace and political shrine, Tambunan, yielding it to STAR in a “truce” forced on PBS-STAR leaders by Malayan leaders like Hamzah Zainuddin. Ten Tambunan PB leaders and their supporters have slammed the PBS leadership for surrendering Tambunan. I myself, though not a PBS member, felt being betrayed as I had championed Joseph Pairin and PBS inside and outside Parliament from 1984 – l986. I believe PBS leaders and members throughout Sabah should express their disgust and disagreement with the surrendering of PBS political shrine of Tambunan to STAR.

8. Sabah’s chronic poverty for 57 years although it is one of the richest states in Malaysia with rich natural resources of oil, gas, timber and others. During the Sabah general election campaign, it was revealed that Sabah has the highest poverty rate of 19.5 per cent in 2019, with 40 per cent of the indigenous people in Sabah below the poverty line, while the national poverty rate was only 5%.

9. Placing the Keningau Batu Sumpah and its three pledges of “Ugama Bebas Dalam Sabah”, “Tanah Tanah dalam Sabah di kuasai oleh Kerajaan Sabah” and “Adat Istiadat anak rayat Sabah dihormatkan dan dipelihara oleh Kerajaan” on the agenda of the Special Committee on Malaysia Agreement 1963 chaired by the Prime Minister.

10. Muhyiddin has given Sabah state general election a national significance, concerning his own political survival as Prime Minister coupled with the media conference by Anwar Ibrahim yesterday that he has the numbers to become Prime Minister and outst Muhyiddin.

11. Removal of Sabah and Malaysia among the countries on top of the world’s list where there is serious problem of corruption and money-laundering

12.Former Chief Justice Richard Malanjun’s call to Sabahans to vote Warisan Plus for a New Sabah and a New Malaysia, where there is unity, inclusivity and the upholding of the five principles of Rukun Negara.

(Media Statement by DAP MP for Iskandar Puteri Lim Kit Siang providing a summary of the 2020 Sabah state general election in Kota Kinabalu on Thursday, 24th September 2020)