Parti Warisan Sabah’s claim of becoming a prime player if the opposition wins the 14th general election will be a pipe dream, as it is now a puppet of the Dr Mahathir Mohamad-led Pakatan Harapan, claimed caretaker Sabah chief minister Musa Aman.

He said it was ironic for Warisan president Shafie Apdal to talk about championing the needs of the people when he failed to deliver on his responsibility, in his ministry and even in his own constituency, while he was still a federal cabinet minister.

He said it was very hypocritical of Shafie to now suddenly champion the issue of the Malaysia Aggrement 1963 (MA63) and not when he was in a position of authority while he was in government, and working closely with those who walked within the corridors of power like Muhyiddin Yassin.

“Now suddenly he wants to save Sabah for Sabahans to resolve the MA63 issue? He is now working with Dr Mahathir, the very person who failed the people of Sabah for the 22 years he was in office as the prime minister by not recognising the significance of Malaysia Day let alone speak of the Malaysia Agreement 1963,” he said after visiting the Batu Putih polling district centre in Sandakan yesterday.

He said when Prime Minister Najib Razak took over office as the prime minister, he gave recognition to Malaysia Day on Sept 16 by declaring it a national holiday.

“He even called for a royal commission of inquiry on the large presence of immigrants in Sabah and agreed to the establishment of a high level committee on finding solutions to issues on MA63.

“Najib even declared that whatever rights taken away, either knowingly or unknowingly, will be returned. Did Mahathir or Muhyiddin ever speak on this before,” he asked.

“Now Shafie wants to find an end to the MA63 issue within a short period of time. He is just playing to the gallery to fool the people and gain political mileage to chase his dream,” he said.

He said Shafie should not confuse quiet diplomacy and bringing issues to the table for discussion with being subservient to the federal government and the prime minister.

He said fostering closer relations with the federal government has paved the way for him to bring Sabah’s issues and development needs for discussions with Najib thereby allowing him to request for large allocations for socio-economic development and high impact projects in the state.

- Bernama