Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP)Manifesto 2012
Sabah deserves better in terms of more
equitable distribution of opportunities, in social, economic and
infrastructural development and a better quality of life.
We are faced with sad realities in Sabah: the so-called state autonomy
is only in the imagination as the divide-and-rule regime practised by
Kuala Lumpur has brought a proud people to their knees.
dignity, sovereignty and security of the state and nation are
threatened by the presence of illegal immigrants many of whom have
acquired legal status.
Sabah although rich in natural resources and
once the second richest state in the country, is now the poorest.
authority concentrated in Kuala Lumpur, being poor also made Sabahans
powerless and they have come to depend on and subservient to others,
particularly peninsular Malaysian politicians in Kuala Lumpur.
This must change.
Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) wants to effect this change and restore
Sabah's rightful position in Malaysia.
On 17 September 2008, the day that SAPP took a decisive step to leave
the Barisan Nasional, the Party had also approved a "People's
Declaration", commonly known as the 8-Point Declaration. This
declaration provides the basic framework of our manifesto for the 13th
With a disciplined and united team in SAPP, the Party will be able to
provide a similarly strong team in the government. But before we can do
that, we need the voters in Sabah to trust our struggles to address the
deterioration and restore
- the spirit of the Malaysia Agreement
- our rightful position as equal partners in the Federation of Malaysia
- our rights and privileges in the choice of our state leaders
- our control over our resources
- our role in the running of our beloved country.
Malaysia is one country with historical, ethnical and practical
differences between the component states. We shall pursue a "one
country, two systems" approach to address these distinct differences so
that the uniqueness of Sabah are not marginalised and eventually
Only a resounding endorsement from the voters in Sabah can make this
Manifesto a reality.
With our mission "To Establish a Trustworthy Government and a
Progressive, Just and Harmonious Society", we pledge to the people of Sabah that we shall do the followings:
1 SABAH IDENTITY CARD (SABAH IC)
In order to safeguard the identity
rights of genuine Malaysians of Sabah origin, Sabahans need our own
Identity Cards to differentiate ourselves from the dubious document
holders. The massive proliferation of fake identity papers in Sabah is
a failure of the Malaysian authorities to protect and preserve our
SAPP will issue the Sabah Identity Card to qualified Malaysians in
Sabah. A State department will be set up for this purpose. This is
entirely within the constitutions of Sabah and Malaysia.
The Sabah IC holders will be entitled to land ownership within the
State, trading license, State scholarships, social welfare and other
benefits from the State Government or its agencies.
As true Malaysians, we in Sabah
sincerely feel that the Federal Government must honour the 1963
Malaysia Agreement in safeguarding the interests, rights, and the
autonomy of the people of Sabah upon the formation of the federation of
The Federal Government is legally obligated to respect, honour and
implement the Malaysia Agreement relating to the Borneonisation of the
federal public service in Sabah.
SAPP will seek what Sabah is legally entitled to, including recourse to
judicial redress. A legal suit to enforce Borneonisation will be
instituted six months after SAPP forms the Sabah State Government if
the Federal Government fails or refuses to honour promise of
Borneonisation stated in the Malaysia Agreement 1963.
3 REVIEW OF STATE- FEDERAL RELATIONSHIP
SAPP will pursue a constitutional review
of the Malaysian Federation to truly reflect the spirit and intent of
the formation of Malaysia. This review will include:
• The High Court in Borneo shall be enhanced in authority and status;
• Transfer of legislative powers in Schedule 9 (Legislative Lists of
the Federal Constitution) from the Federal List to Concurrent List or,
where appropriate, to the State List relating to trade, commerce,
industry, shipping, navigation, fisheries, communications and
transport, energy and hydro power, census, registrations of births and
deaths and marriages, labour, consent over granting of Malaysian
citizenship in Sabah, private education, amongst others; review of the
Cabotage Policy and the Money Lenders Act, together with the financial
resources to assume and take back these functions of government.
• Schedule 10 Part V (Additional Sources of Revenues Assigned to States
of Sabah and Sarawak) can be expanded to include oil and gas, customs
duties and revenues originating from Sabah such as sales tax collected
4 SABAH NATIVE AFFAIRS
SAPP proclaims its support for the
Native Court to be positioned as having the same judicial status as
other Courts of our country.
A Department of "Legislation and Judiciary Native Affairs" (Jabatan
Perundangan dan Kehakiman Anak Negeri) will be established in order to
manage and administer the Sabah Native Courts system.
SAPP Government will revise and enhance the Native Interpretation
Enactment towards asserting the status of native, Sino, and mixed
5. SABAH C0MMISSION OF INQUIRY ON
Injustices have been done to the bona
fide Malaysians by the presence of illegal immigrants who have been
sharing our resources and facilities and also threatening our safety
SAPP will pursue the setting up of a Sabah Commission of Inquiry on the
illegal immigrants by invoking the Inquiry Commissions Enactment 1981
so that the sovereignty of the State and the rights of legitimate
Sabahans are upheld.
6. ANTI-HOPPING LAW
To deter elected members of the
legislative assembly and parliament from switching parties after being
elected, SAPP shall pursue the anti-hop principle so that any elected
member who changes party shall be required to resign his/her seat. The
member may submit to the electors by re-contesting the seat concerned.
This principle will require amendments to both the State and Federal
constitutions which SAPP shall pursue.
7 SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT
7.1 Unity and Social Justice
SAPP pledges to build a united multi-racial society, living in peace
and harmony, upholding religious harmony and freedom consistent with
the State and Federal constitutions.
SAPP pledges to:
• Reject racial and religious extremism;
• Eliminate the practice of racial politics and racial discrimination;
• Develop a civil society with dignity;
• Eliminate corruption and social injustice.
7.2 A Caring Society
Every Malaysian in Sabah in need is entitled to relief and social
welfare regardless of ethnic background and religion.
SAPP pledges to Malaysians with Sabah IC:
• To provide assistance directly to the target groups to eliminate
• To provide assistance to the disabled, elderly, single parents and
• Sabah House in Kuala Lumpur will take on the additional
responsibility of providing assistance and counselling to Sabahans
working or studying or residing in Peninsular Malaysia.
7.3 RM300 Million For First Time House Buyer
Housing is a basic human need. Most
people today cannot afford to buy and own a house especially the lower
income group because the prices of houses have become so unaffordable.
SAPP pledges to:
• Fulfil the target of one Family one
• Set up a revolving fund of RM300 million to assist first-time house
• Embark on a Squatter Free Campaign;
• Provide free housing for the hardcore poor;
• Grant lower land premium for developers building low-cost houses.
Education is the fundamental requirement for the advancement of any
society and the creation of a balanced human being, spiritually,
physically and intellectually.
Under the ONE COUNTRY TWO SYSTEMS, SAPP Government pledges:
• To allow schools in Sabah to choose to
adopt the PPSMI (teaching of Science and Mathematics in English);
• To address the problems relating to the service of the temporary
teachers and the shortages of teachers in the vernacular schools;
• To intensify Yayasan Sabah's effort in bridging the social disparity
by extending assistance in the form of providing hostels in the rural
areas especially the remote villages;
• To disburse scholarships, bursaries and financial assistance for
deposits offered by the State Government and also Yayasan Sabah fairly
and justly to all qualified Malaysians with Sabah ICs;
• To provide poor and needy students especially from the remote
villages with financial assistance by Yayasan Sabah;
• To commit to education development in the state and will allocate
grants annually to all the vernacular and mission schools in Sabah;
• To give a second chance to the young school dropouts in Sabah and
will formulate a comprehensive Adult Night School programme throughout
the State. Allowances will be introduced to encourage lifelong learning
and in order to empower youths otherwise engaged in informal sectors of
the economy to break out of the handcuffs of illiteracy and the cycle
7.5 Sabah Heritage
SAPP is committed to preserve and
protect the cultures of all Sabahans in a fair and equitable manner
whilst respecting cultures of all Malaysians.
Due to the special position and
experience in Sabah, the SAPP State Government shall set up a panel on
the history of Sabah to cast Sabah in the right perspective.
8 AMANAH PROGRESIF RAKYAT SABAH (APRS)
SAPP proposes the setting up of a peoples' welfare trust with the name AMANAH PROGRESIF RAKYAT SABAH (APRS). The source of funding for this
trust will be from the oil and gas sector and other sources.
Citizens of Malaysia who have attained 21 years of age, registered
voters residing in Sabah and hold "Sabah ICs" are eligible to receive
the cash distribution as and when declared by the Board of Trustees.
9 BASIC INFRASTRUCTURE
Infrastructure and Public Utilities in
Sabah are still far behind in terms of extent and maintenance.
SAPP will ensure that:
• Clean water and electricity can be enjoyed by people of all walks of
life in Sabah;
• Prioritised construction, upgrading and maintenance of rural roads;
• Construction and maintenance of roads in the city is enhanced to ease
• Public transportation system will be enhanced holistically especially
in the main cities.
10 RETURN OF LABUAN
SAPP proposes that Labuan be returned to
Sabah and governed as a Special Administrative Region (SAR):
• Labuan will be represented by three elected State Assemblymen at the
Sabah State Legislative Assembly to complement the existing Member of
Parliament in the federal legislature;
• The financial hub status of Labuan will be maintained and by being
self administrative, will enhance its autonomy as an International
Offshore Financial Centre (IOFC);
• 20% of total oil royalty received by Sabah will be given to Labuan
for its self-governance;
• SAPP Government will pursue the construction of the Labuan Bridge
linking Sabah mainland to the island;
11 ENVIRONMENT AND SUSTAINABILITY
Sabah is internationally famed for its
natural endowment. It is crucial that we manage our natural resources
in a sustainable manner.
• Ensure that all logging and deforestation activities be carried out
in a regulated manner and in accordance with International Tropical
Timber Organisation (ITTO) standards;
• Develop alternative energy sources with emphasis on renewable energy;
• Enhance the culture of recycling by providing a comprehensive
compliance framework backed by user-friendly operational systems;
• Encourage and support the use of green technologies.
12 YOUTH EMPOWERMENT
SAPP is dedicated to championing for the Malaysian youths in Sabah. The
hopes and aspirations of the youth must be heard more by the policy
makers of the day. As such, SAPP is committed to the following:
12.1 Youth Career and Motivation Programme (YCMP)
This proactive programme will be part of SAPP's priorities in
eradicating youth unemployment within Sabah by moulding a disciplined,
multi-skilled and productive force.
12.2 Sabah Youth Assembly (SYA)
Modelled after the United Kingdom Youth Parliament, this platform
allows eligible young persons, between the ages of 15 to 25, to vote
for their own "YBM", or "Yang Berhormat Muda". The areas represented
will be as per the current state electoral constituencies' structure. A
mechanism will be developed to harness the human resources available in
12.3 Sports Development
SAPP recognizes the importance of sports in nation-building. Towards
this end, SAPP will support sports development with special attention
on funding for sports and sport infrastructure while ensuring that
grants reach all levels.
12.4 Arts and Culture for Youths
Recognising the emerging generation of creative talents in Sabah, the
SAPP government shall support and set aside sufficient resources for
the growth of a vibrant arts, culture and film-making sector in Sabah.
13 WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
SAPP recognizes the importance of women
as a resource and acknowledges women's rights to opportunities, access
to resources, participation in the decision-making process and access
to power. It is supportive of the advancement of women in all spheres
SAPP pledges to:
• Work towards raising the participation of women in key
decision-making positions in the government and in politics;
• Enhance economic empowerment of women in the rural areas with focus
on accessibility to resources;
• Ensure women who are head of households have access to housing and
other financial assistance.
14 ICT DEVELOPMENT
SAPP State Government will implement a
program within the purview of the state authority to improve ICT
infrastructure and narrow the digital divide through the following
• Build up a Pan Borneo Information Highway;
• Provide free internet services for all schools in Sabah;
• Build an "E-Tuition Centre" which will provide free tuition services
for all schools through the internet services.
15 SET UP A GAMING COMMISSION
Sabahans spend RM700 million annually on
licensed gaming alone. This has spawned social problems and a serious
drain on Sabah's economy.
SAPP pledges to set up a GAMING COMMISSION with the view of curbing and
controlling the rampant gaming activities in Sabah.
The Gaming Commission shall research, review and recommend to the State
and Federal governments the policies and enforcement needed to protect
the people and the economy from the ill effects of gaming.
Counselling services shall be offered in
collaboration with non-governmental organisations to help addicted
gamblers discard the gambling malaise.
Special efforts shall be made with the
Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission to deter and prevent
16 MANPOWER REQUIREMENT AND LIVING WAGE
Productivity of the local work force has
fallen way behind in comparison to other states and regions. This is
mainly due to the failure of the educational system, manpower policies
and the structure of our socio-economy over the last several decades.
SAPP believes minimum wage for local workers shall be
productivity-linked and above the poverty line. Therefore, SAPP
advocates for a living wage policy. We also recognise that foreign
workers are still needed to sustain economic growth in Sabah but they
need to be strictly regulated.
To achieve this balance, close and
sincere consultations must be held among the government, the employee
unions, employer associations, independent consultants and experts. The
aim is to forge a vibrant, business-friendly economy whereby the
employees are justly paid amidst conducive working conditions.
17 FOREIGN CONSULATES
SAPP Government will push for the
setting up of foreign consulates in Sabah such as the Philippine
Consulate, the China Consulate and others.
Manifesto version in [Bahasa
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