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SEMPORNA: Chief Minister Shafie Apdal says he still regards Muhyiddin Yassin as a good friend, even though they have their political differences and are not in the same government.
Recalling his ups and downs in politics, especially his dark stint at Umno in 2016, Shafie said what was now certain was that he himself had remained steadfast in his goal of overthrowing BN and Umno.
“I will continue to be his friend, he is an old friend of mine,” he said with a smile during an exclusive interview with Bernama at his residence here recently.
He was asked for his comment on the prime minister’s recent statement that he was saddened that Shafie, whom Muhyiddin calls a good friend, was not with him at the government leadership.
On June 24, 2016, Umno suspended Shafie’s membership and expelled his then Vice President Muhyiddin and Supreme Council member Mukhriz Mahathir. Shafie resigned from Umno 10 days after his suspension.
Shafie, who is president of Warisan, said it would be uncomfortable for him and his party to cooperate with a party that had been rejected by the people.
“There is no reason for us to cooperate with a party that has been rejected by the people. Cooperating with the party will also make people reject us, ”said Shafie, who is leading Warisan to the 16th Sabah state election.
When asked about claims that Sabah could not be developed if the state and federal governments are not on the same page, he said this was an incorrect view, citing as examples how previous state administrations led by local Berjaya and PBS had cooperated with the federal government led by BN.
He said that even at that time, many parts of Sabah’s districts lagged far behind in terms of infrastructure development, health care and education.
“Let’s not talk about safety in the coastal waters off the east coast. We say that this is an area in Malaysia where sovereignty and security are constantly threatened, with an annual number of robberies and kidnappings much higher than in other parts of the country, ”he said.
Instead, Shafie felt it was time for the state government to work with the federal government from government to government (G2G), without cooperating in the political arena.
He said that being stationed under a common political umbrella could make it difficult for the state to criticize or voice its problems for fear that its requests for seats and the like will not be honored during the election period.
“And this is what has happened now. If we only forge cooperation (G2G) without any (political) pact, we will have some freedom to express the voices of the rank and file, ”he said.
He added that regardless of who formed the state government, the federal government had a responsibility to ensure the security of Sabah, as this was enshrined in the Federal Constitution.
“The federal government collects taxes from Sabah and Sarawak and a large part of its responsibility is to give back in various ways, such as building schools, safeguarding safety, health, as established by the Constitution.
“If they didn’t do this, we can take them to court,” he said.
