Sabah's new hope is SAPP - By Amde Sidik

From SAPP Blog post at - http://www.sapp.org.my/amde/110302_amde_sabah_new_hope.asp

Sabah's new hope is SAPP

By Amde Sidik (March 2, 2011)

SAPP has always been prepared to sit down with other opposition political leaders in the State, no question about it so long as the agenda is to topple the present state government in Sabah.

While at the Federal level, SAPP leaders are supporting all out federal based opposition. It should be better that way, clear division of labour.

For those who are wary and worry should SAPP get a simple majority to form a government, the situation is no better than during PBS government where PBS was whacked left and right, in the end resorted to joining BN; in my view, the scenario is no longer the same. We are in different era.

For shorter explanation, Federal leaders need Sabah and Sarawak more to form the federal government.

Forty-eight years ago it was just the opposite where Sabah and Sarawak had given freely nearly all their parliamentary seats to enable BN to form Federal government.

Today if only Sabah and Sarawak voters open their eyes beyond the zincs, blue water tank and other forms of bribes, situation could be different. Sabah and Sarawak could have minimized the bullying game by the BN leaders.

Why are we being ignored and even called a fixed deposit? Largely because of our own ignorance and another is for monetary gains? I guarantee there is no real UMNO fighter in Sabah all are but because of the reasons I mentioned above. What have they to proof of their struggle in UMNO? USNO and UNKO, yes. Unfortunately our younger generation doesn't read this local history of ours anymore except UMNO.

For SAPP, the Chinese image has been shifting well into a multi-racial and multi-religious Sabah. Bumiputra membership of the party outnumbered other races.

Bumiputra leaders comprised about half of the total numbers of party's leaders, currently at the constituency level-Constituency Liaison Committee (CLC), Bumiputras are dominating leadership group.

For the first time in the history of the Party that it has a Muslim for Deputy President since it inception 18 eighteen years ago.

By constitution SAPP has always been a non-racial political party right from the beginning. SAPP doesn't practice quota system as many people think it is. Whilst some find the ideas of non-quota system is unfair while another find is the most appropriate. When asked why quota system isn't practiced after all Sabah has many racial groups?

I'm of the opinion that the selection should be based on ability to lead not because of race and plus connection. Second, we can't afford to be thinking everything and every time we've to focus our mind based on race and religion. If God wants Sabah to have only one religion, God could have done it long time ago. Every religious person says all races are equal but people made it unequal.

Political party based along racial line party, will one day find to have little followers. It simply is a divisive system, yet our leaders are talking about one Malaysia. Look around BN component political parties are but based along racial line.
Our young are actually no longer looking this way, but our leaders very many of them don't realize, see what we learn from Middle East.

Time has come that we have to chart our political destiny for Sabah and Sarawak and there is not shortcut and no easy way out surely not for faint-hearted leaders.

There is a choice now, those don't want to stay the same, support the opposition political parties and make them win in the General Election that would be my advice.

(Hj Amde Sidik is Deputy President of SAPP)

And SAPP is a Sabah local political party since 1994

(Sources: SAPP website)