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MANILA, Philippines – Foreign Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. announced Tuesday his decision to reactivate his North Borneo Office “after realizing that the rest of the world has forgotten our claim to Sabah.”
Locsin made the announcement during the House committee hearing on appropriations of the proposed DFA budget.
“While we fiercely guard our waters, we do not forget our terrestrial dominion. In seeking to secure what is ours, I have decided to reactivate the North Borneo Office after realizing that the rest of the world has forgotten our claim to Sabah, casually designating it as another country’s territory. Well, we haven’t forgotten, ”Locsin said.
“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 to our country. Our honor is involved here, ”he added.
At the same hearing, the foreign secretary was also asked about the status of the Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East Asia Growth Area.
BIMP-EAGA is a cooperative initiative established in 1994 to boost development in remote and less developed areas in the four participating countries in Southeast Asia.
“It’s been inactive for a while, but now we agree to revive it more or less, like, I guess, even some of our special concerns like Sabah. That was also left in the background, which I never accepted, ”Locsin said.
“Now we are going to revive that office and make sure that no one can challenge that claim without a challenge from us,” he added.
Earlier, a tweet from the US embassy stated that the US donated hygiene kits to Filipinos in “Sabah, Malaysia”, drawing Locsin’s ire.
“Sabah is not in Malaysia if you want to have something to do with the Philippines,” Locsin said in a tweet on July 27.
Sabah is not in Malaysia if you want to have something to do with the Philippines. https://t.co/dWZs1gsndE
– Teddy Locsin Jr. (@teddyboylocsin) July 27, 2020
But Malaysian Foreign Minister Hishammuddin Hussein disagreed with Locsin, calling the Filipino official’s comment “an irresponsible statement that affects bilateral relations.”
“[The Ministry of Foreign Affairs Malaysia] he will summon the Philippine ambassador on Monday to explain. Sabah is and will always be part of Malaysia, ”he said.
This is an irresponsible statement that affects bilateral ties. @MalaysiaMFA he will summon the Philippine ambassador on Monday to explain. Sabah is and will always be part of Malaysia. https://t.co/KcUnDxOySl
– Hishammuddin Hussein 🇲🇾 (@ HishammuddinH2O) July 29, 2020
The Philippines has been claiming Sabah based on the claim that the Sulu Sultanate rightfully owns the northern part of Sabah, as several historians believe that the former Sultan of Sulu received the land in exchange for helping the Sultan of Brunei defeat his enemies. . [ac]
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