Locsin shares plan to reactivate an office in DFA dedicated to Sabah’s claim of PH

MANILA – Foreign Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. told lawmakers Tuesday that he decided to reactivate the North Borneo Office in the Department of Foreign Affairs to defend the country’s claim on Sabah, a plan that has already raised objections from a former Malaysian official.

“As we fiercely protect our waters, we are not forgetting our land dominance. In seeking to secure what is ours, I have decided to reactivate the North Borneo Office,” Locsin told the House Appropriations Committee.

“After realizing that the rest of us have almost forgotten our claim to Sabah, by casually designating it as another country’s territory, well, we haven’t forgotten. This is one of several international disagreements that we can afford to carry out in our best interest without any risk of loss of any kind for our country, ”he said.

“Our honor is involved here.”

Located east of northern Borneo in Malaysia and southwest of Sulu in the Philippines, Sabah was declared part of the Malaysian federation in 1963, but Manila said it “has acquired dominion and sovereignty” in its 1968 law on the baselines. from the country.

The Philippines claims Sabah, which is currently ruled by Malaysia, citing a land lease agreement in 1878 between the Sulu Sultanate and the British North Borneo Chartered Co.

In response to the interpellation of the representative of Lanao del Sur Abdullah Dimaporo, Locsin said that there are plans to reactivate the East ASEAN growth area of ​​Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines (BIMP-EAGA) and the claim of Sabah.

“BIMP-EAGA, inactive for a while, but it was agreed to revive it. Almost like some of our special concerns as Sabah. That was, for our part, put on the back burner which I never agreed with. But throughout the Years, from one administrator after another, beginning with Cory Aquino, he was pushed into the background, “said the country’s top diplomat who served as Aquino’s legal adviser and speechwriter.

“But something happened this year. And if I can talk about this, when the press release was published by the US embassy and they very casually referred to Sabah, Malaysia, and that was it. I blew my mind,” shared Locsin , recalling an incident that occurred at the end of July.

“I told the (US) embassy to remove it. Of course, they didn’t want to. So I charged them … And (US Secretary of State) Mike Pompeo said, ‘Leave it to me. I’ll be sure to put it down, ‘”he continued.

“Because that has been happening to us. That claim has always been there. We should never have allowed it to be inactive. But … we have no control over that. But now, we are going to revive that office and make sure that no one can question that claim. without a challenge from us. “

“That is part of the history of the Philippines, especially the southern Philippines,” Locsin said of Sabah.

Locsin’s tweet in July that “Sabah is not in Malaysia” prompted a reply from Malaysian Foreign Minister Hishammuddin Hussein that this was “an irresponsible statement.”

Earlier this month, Malaysia’s former Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim reacted to the reactivation of the DFA office in North Borneo, denouncing what he sees as attempts by some Philippine officials to question Malaysia’s sovereignty over Sabah.

While the Philippine government acknowledges the contradictory claims it has with Malaysia over Sabah, Manila remains steadfast in its authority over the territory based on an agreement with the Sulu Sultanate, presidential spokesman Harry Roque said in July.

There have only been intermittent discussions between the Philippines and Malaysia about the conflicting claims.

In November 2016, President Rodrigo Duterte and then-Prime Minister Najib Razak agreed to put the dispute aside.

Last year, on a visit to Manila, then-Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said “there is no claim” when asked about the Philippines’ assertion of sovereignty over Sabah in an exclusive interview with ABS-CBN News.