AMENDMENTS DONE TO PREVENT ABUSE BY FUTURE CMs - YONG

I acted to prevent abuse by future CMs, says Yong

Kota Kinabalu October 12, 2011: Amendments to the Sabah Land Ordinance, the Forest Enactment and the Mining Ordinance to transfer the Chief Minister's powers to the Cabinet on June 17, 1996, guaranteed that no Chief Minister can sign away huge tracts of land, forests and mines to private interests, said Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) President Datuk Yong Teck Lee.

"I was the Chief Minister to move the motion to amend the laws which were passed by the Legislative Assembly. The CM's powers have since been transferred to the Cabinet.

"This was done three weeks after I was appointed Chief Minister in view of the massive abuse of powers by previous chief ministers like the award of the 347 acres of seafront land to a company registered in the British Virgin Island which allowed secret shareholders.

"The land, now known as Sutera Harbour, was applied for in 1993 and land title was issued super speed the same year. The premium paid was about RM 7million. The same lands were then charged to a bank for more than US40 million. All these were done towards the closing days of the PBS administration.

"Another piece of the sea, opposite the first beach near Shangri La Tanjong Aru Resort, was approved by the 1993 Chief Minister to a KL company," he said in a statement, Tuesday.

Yong said that even the Maliau Basin, now a protected Heritage site, was approved for coal mine exploration permit to an Australian company during PBS.

"All these were never known to the Cabinet at the time. Hence, the need to transfer the powers to the Cabinet so that a future Chief Minister, including myself, was not able to abuse his powers over land, forests and mining," he said.

Another approval of land for joint venture before the June 17 1996 amendments to the law was the so-called government quarters land at second beach and third beach, he said.

"This agreement was signed a few weeks before I became Chief Minister, in the closing days of Datuk Salleh Tun Said as Chief Minister.

"But PBS and DAP characters collude to defame me and tell lies that the project was approved by me. PBS and DAP want to protect Umno leaders and want to kill me politically. In return, both PBS and DAP have been rewarded.

"On the question of the so-called seafront lands that Hiew King Cheu has accused me of, there was never any approval of the project or to any private company.

"Any company may submit proposals and any person may sue.

The fact that the Government has won the case shows that the facts speak for themselves," he said.

In this context, Yong said DAP ex-Sabah Chairman, Hiew, should stop being used by Umno to serve its interests. "As proven in the Batu Sapi by-election, Hiew and DAP colluded with Umno to attack only SAPP and not criticise Umno. This Umno-DAP Hiew collusion is still going on," he said.

"Like in the recent 3-day SAPP flag-raising to commemorate the 3rd anniversary of SAPP leaving the BN, Hiew got his sidekick, Edward Mujie, to complain about the flags.

"Not even City Hall or any other Barisan Nasional (BN) or Umno leaders had wanted to look foolish by complaining about the flags because of the fiasco over the July 11 DBKK/BOMBA attempt to remove the Sabahtv.net signboard.

"But Umno got Hiew and Edward to do the dirty work for them.

On the July 11 Sabahtv.net signboard case, Hiew and Edward Mujie again became the spokesmen for Umno and City Hall by criticising SAPP on the issue," he claimed.

Yong said similar to the case of the Saham Amanah Sabah, "Umno never dared to say anything because they know that the people involved are their own people".

When pressed for an answer, the Chief Minister brushed aside the SAS issue as "petty" and refused to publish a white paper to release the information on SAS and its dealings and who the real culprits are, he said.

"After repeated delaying tactics by the BN Cabinet, SAPP's assemblypersons, Datuk Liew Teck Chan and Melanie Chia, finally managed to debate on the SAS White Paper motion last August 2010.

"But in the Assembly, Umno got PBS puppets like Yee Moh Chai, Herbert Timbun Lagadan and turncoat Raymond Tan to speak for Umno.

"The Chief Minister and Finance Minister and all the Umno YBs kept silent, in the same way that Umno has been silent on the phantom voters issue, the illegals and fake ICs," he said.

"But Umno has nothing to fear because they have PBS to do their dirty work and divert the attack to SAPP, especially me, on the SAS issue," he said.

Yong said it was the same with the phantom voters and illegals, when PBS was in the opposition, they kept attacking SAPP and particularly me but not Umno.

"Does PBS honestly think that Umno people are not involved?

Now PBS has not only become completely deaf and dumb on the illegals issue, it is even answering on behalf of Umno. Such is the control of Umno over PBS and Sabah DAP," he claimed.

Yong said "everybody knew that Hiew's company business was involved in the ongoing KK seafront project and this was why, when people complained, Hiew went to the site and declared it was 'earth filling' and not 'reclamation', as though there is a difference between earth filling and reclamation."

Yong said Hiew was also the only person who volunteered his views that the Karamunsing Complex was safe and stable.

"Never mind that was even before City Hall or Public Works Department had been asked to look into matter. This made people think Hiew has a hidden agenda," he said.

"So, Hiew should stop being used by Umno. Everybody knows that the so-called seafront projects signed by MLGH Sdn Bhd are linked to Umno, some of whom are still very active in BN today.

"All the names of the Umno-linked personalities were mentioned in the trial. Hiew should not be misled by his Umno handlers about the "CM Incorporated" shares as though there is something mischievous.

"In fact, most, if not all, government company shares are held in the name of "CM Incorporated" or "Ministry of Finance Incorporated" as a matter of legal requirement.

"The on-going sea front projects in KK which will block the sea view of Promenade and Marina apartments are also Umno-linked," he claimed, and assured that he and SAPP leaders would not stop raising the issues of land grabs.