Warisan rep urges Sabah voters to 'quarantine' corrupt GRS politicians

Summary

• Warisan assemblyperson Calvin Chong likens corruption to Covid-19.

• Chong urges Sabah voters to ‘quarantine’ all corrupt politicians, saying they must be isolated to prevent the spread.

• Chong takes a jab at Chief Minister Hajiji Noor over the latter’s “anti-corruption efforts” while in office.

A Warisan assemblyperson today called for allegedly corrupt politicians from Sabah’s ruling Gabungan Rakyat Sabah to be “quarantined” from the upcoming state polls, likening corruption to the Covid-19 contagion that necessitates isolation of the infected.

Elopura assemblyperson Calvin Chong said that the only way to rid Sabah of graft, which he likened to an epidemic, is by replacing the government and elected representatives from GRS who are involved in corrupt activities.

“Everyone must remember that during the Covid-19 pandemic, if any individual was found to be a close contact or tested positive for Covid-19, they had to be quarantined.

“The people of Sabah should take the same action to quarantine GRS politicians who are ‘positive’ for corruption in the upcoming state election.

“If the group of elected representatives who are ‘positive’ for corruption are still allowed to move freely within society, what will happen? They could spread the virus of corruption to others.

“This would threaten the system and social practices in Sabah, ultimately destroying the future of the younger generation,” Chong said.

Yesterday, the whistleblower who exposed the Sabah corruption scandal lodged a police report, expressing fear of suffering the same fate as Pamela Ling, who was kidnapped in broad daylight while on her way to the MACC headquarters in Putrajaya.

In a recent interview with former minister Zaid Ibrahim, the 36-year-old man known only as “Albert” described his actions to expose the corruption allegations that implicated Sabah Chief Minister Hajiji Noor as an act of desperation.

Misleading statement

Chong, in his statement, cited Albert’s exposé in response to a recent report by Malay daily Utusan Malaysia that recapped Hajiji’s “anti-corruption efforts” over the last five years in office, beginning with a declaration made on International Anti-Corruption Day 2020.

“Once again, Hajiji has issued a misleading statement that insults the intelligence of the people of Sabah.

“Does he feel no shame or remorse over his statement? Perhaps he is unaware that the entire Malaysian public, especially Sabahans, are laughing at his theatrics,” claimed Chong.

It was reported that among Hajiji’s earliest urgings was to establish the Organisational Anti-Corruption Plan in all state government bodies to ensure high levels of integrity among civil servants and to address the problem of corruption.

Hajiji also urged the public to report abuse of power and corruption to MACC, and they would be protected under the Whistleblower Protection Act 2010.

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