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KOTA KINABALU: The United National Organization of Sabah (Usno) has released a new manifesto that aims to place Sabah in a more prominent position within Malaysia while strengthening ties with the Federal Government.
Its de facto leader, Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia, said that Usno has the same fighting spirit that he had when the party was formed in 1961, but added that his new fight is to place Sabah and its people on an equal footing with those of Peninsular Malaysia.
“In 1961, Usno fought for North Borneo to be independent from the British colonizers, but in 2020 we want the people of Sabaha to have the same rights and privileges that people in Peninsular Malaysia enjoy,” he said at the launch of the party’s manifesto. on Wednesday (Sept. 16).
He added that Usno’s “new agreement” with Putrajaya should not be based on the Malaysia Agreement of 1963 (MA63) because he considers it to be a “closed agreement”, since the purpose of the agreement was the formation of a new nation.
He said part of the new Usno deal is to ensure that the Sabahans play a more prominent role in the leadership line at the federal level.
Pandikar, who is competing in Pintasan in Kota Belud, said this would include Sabahans or Sarawakians holding high-level positions in government, such as holding the post of deputy prime minister or assuming responsibilities as ministers in charge of finance or rural development.
“Why should these posts only be awarded to Peninsular Malaysia?” Said former chairman Dewan Rakyat.
He added that the party will also fight to increase Sabah’s seats in Dewan Negara from two to eight and that 33% of the Malaysian cabinet is made up of Sabah leaders.
On the other hand, Pandikar said that the family of Usno’s founder, Tun Mustapha Datu Harun, should thank the new leaders of Usno for reminding the Sabahans of the struggle he once led.
“We never intended to offend the family when we used their image in our materials. Our intention was to remind Sabahans of the sacrifices of previous leaders. The family should thank us,” he said.
Pandikar was responding to a statement made by Mustapha’s son, Datuk Amir Kahar, advising the new Usno leadership line not to use any images of his father in party campaign materials.
Amir, who is running as an independent candidate in Banggi, said the family did not want others to use Mustapha’s image for political purposes.
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