Tuesday, October 7, 2008

WEDNESDAY-8 OCTOBER 2008- RACE RELATION ACT NOT NEEDED IN SABAH:PBS

Race Relation Act not needed in Sabah: PBS


KOTA KINABALU:


Sabah is a good example of unity and harmony as the people from the various ethnic groups live together peacefully. Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) Chief Information Officer Johnny Mositun said Sabah is the model of unity and harmony despitethe different races, culture, religion and tradition. “It is for this reason that it is not necessary to have the Race Relations Act in Sabah,” he said, adding that PBS stand is to put the issue of race relations to rest. This is like the Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition where there are many parties with different political ideologies but all are working together for the development of the country. “I am very touched when told by friends from Peninsular Malaysia that Sabah has the best formula for unity and harmony and is a model for the country,” he said. Mositun was commenting on the statement by Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak who said that the Race Relations Act may not be necessary in Sabah because of the open attitude adopted by the various ethnic groups in the State. The spirit of openness and the intimate ties between the various races and religions enable them to accept the various peculiar elements of the other races, he said. “If we instill these values in the various races, then we may not need to formulate the Race Relations Act,” Najib said during a Hari Raya gathering with the BN component parties here on Saturday night. Meanwhile, PBS Moyog Chief John Crysto Masabal urged MCA to concentrate on resolving issues at its central leadership level before putting its focus on Sabah. MCA should be focusing on its re-branding efforts in Peninsular Malaysia as the Party’s support there has been affected as shown by the March 8 election results, he said. He was commenting on the statement by MCA Vice President Datuk Donald Lim who said that the Party needs more representation in the State Cabinet. Lim lamented that although having been in Sabah for 17 years, MCA only has one State seat and a post in the State Cabinet. MCA’s representation in Sabah is in the form of its State Chief, Datuk Edward Khoo who is Assistant Minister to the Chief Minister and Kapayan State Assemblyman. Lim believed that Khoo should be made a Deputy Chief Minister to replace Datuk Raymond Tan as the latter remaining in the post is against the BN spirit. Lim also was of the opinion that BN component parties, especially Umno, must realize that only MCA has the resources, experience and manpower to help Sabah as Umno and MCA are the two biggest political parties in the Coalition in terms of number of members. Commenting on Lim’s call to increase MCA’s representation in the State, Masabal said it was high time for Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman to review the 5:3:2 quota in the State Cabinet.