BN will continuously deliver Sabah’s progress

At the launch of the state-level “Nadi Kasih” house repair programme in Tuaran, Najib said the best was yet to come for Sabah under the BN government.

BN will uphold the interests of the state and its people, says Najib

(NST) – KOTA KINABALU: PRIME Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak was yesterday given a rousing welcome by some 75,000 Sabahans when he visited the districts of Papar, Beaufort and Tuaran to pledge his commitment and that of Barisan Nasional (BN) to continuously deliver progress and uphold the interests of the state and its people.

Najib, who is also BN chairman and Umno president, said BN’s solid track record in the state showed that the coalition was credible in fulfilling its promises.

This, he said, was in stark contrast to the opposition’s failure to bring progress, as only 15 per cent of the promises made at the last general election had been kept in the four states it held.

“They come here to sell their promises and ask for sympathy. They pass the blame to others. But talk is easy; to deliver and to implement is another thing altogether.

“The BN government has remained in power all these years because it feels the pulse of the people and delivers on its promises.” The crowd warmed up to Najib when he used the word mambalut, which means good in the local Bisaya dialect, when referring to BN. He took a swipe at the opposition’s tendency for making empty promises and underhand tactics, referring to such ploys as mongumbui, a Bisaya word which, loosely translated, means spreading lies.

The prime minister, who was greeted with thunderous applause when he made his speeches in the districts, also announced allocations of more than RM250 million for several projects in Sabah.

They include RM226 million to build a water treatment plant at Sungai Padas in Beaufort to provide clean water to the state’s west coast districts and RM26 million to repair some 5,200 dilapidated houses.

The Federal Government would also assist the state government in the upkeep of Beaufort Middle School, while plans are afoot to set up an Islamic college in the district.

The government, Najib said, would also upgrade the Papar-Lok Kawi road in phases. In Papar, Najib told 30,000 people who gathered at the Padang Pekan Papar that they could expect more development for the state and ensure the country progressed under BN’s leadership.

In contrast, he said, the opposition was only good at making promises they could not deliver, including promises to appoint individuals as the chief minister and ministers should they get the support of Sabahans.

“They promised the moon, the stars and in fact they even promised that one could go to heaven. They make all kinds of promises, including on posts of the chief minister and ministers.”

Najib said when opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim was the deputy prime  and finance minister, he never cared for the people of Sabah. But now, the opposition leader portrayed himself as being sympathetic to them.

  “I heard that in the past, when he came to Sabah, he kept on banging the table … what he asked for was not for the people of Sabah. I am not going to tell the reason for his action as the other Umno leaders here would know better about the issue.”

  Najib also took a dig at Anwar for being conferred by a Sabah  Parti Keadilan Rakyat leader the “Huguan Siou”, or paramount chief title, which is often reserved for a Kadazandusun Murut leader.

  The issue had triggered an uproar among the Kadazandusun Murut community as they felt that it offended their cultural sensitivities.

  “(Tan Sri Joseph) Pairin (Kitingan) is the authentic ‘Huguan Siou’ while the other one (Anwar) is …,” he said three times to the crowd, who then shouted back in reply “Fake!”, and to this, Najib exclaimed “Confirmed”.

  At a press conference later, Najib, responding to a question on when Parliament would be dissolved, said BN’s priority now was to meet the people and explain the government’s policies and programmes.

  “Don’t ask me when the election is. It will be when I, the party and the people are ready for the dissolution (of Parliament).”
 
  Najib said BN would only dissolve Parliament after verifying the proposed candidates’ backgrounds, getting security details in place and getting a report on the candidates from the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission.

    On how satisfied  he was with the preparations by Sabah BN in facing the general election, Najib said he was happy with the coordination among the component parties.