PARLIAMENT Lawlessness may grip the country if the economy is mismanaged, Parti Warisan Sabah (Warisan) president Shafie Apdal fears.

In his budget debate speech, Shafie highlighted how Sabah and Sarawak were not benefiting from the states' wealth in natural resources.

He said this is because there were a lot of apple polishers managing the states' wealth.

“I worry (that this will) cause what happened to our neighbours like the Philippines (in the 1970s).

“The economy plummeted, there were many (criminal) cases such as theft, kidnapping and murder. Unemployment is there,” Shafie told the House.

Sabah and Sarawak are the poorest states in Malaysia.

The Philippines was under martial law from 1972 until 1985 under the reign of Ferdinand Marcos.

Shafie would later clarify to reporters later that he was not implying that Malaysia now had its own version of Marcos.

Earlier in his speech, Shafie lamented how Sabah and Sarawak's education needs were not being met, with many schools being in a dilapidated state.

Shafie also criticised the Tugu Negara park project which is expected to cost RM650 million.

Of this amount, RM500 million will be borne by Khazanah Nasional.

"This is for tourists to enjoy the sights. But imagine, if we built hospitals or schools, wouldn't that be better?" he said.

The Taman Tugu park project was mooted by Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak to give Malaysia a world class park, similar to New York's Central Park, and London's Hyde Park.