I am grateful to Musa: Sakaran
Published on: Tuesday, May 08, 2018
Kota Kinabalu: First Chief Minister under the two-year rotation period following Barisan Nasional's takeover of the State Government in 1994, Tun Datuk Seri Panglima Haji Sakaran bin Dandai (pic), officially thanked Tan Sri Musa Aman, Monday, for the key role he played in rejecting a public listed company's attempt to gain access to Yayasan Sabah's prized timber concessions in 1996. "I remember Musa advised me not to chair the meeting because my nephew, Shafie Apdal, was involved in the deal, hence there would be a conflict of interest. "I understand that the proposal was rejected by Musa because it would have been detrimental to Yayasan Sabah as a whole," he said in a statement, adding he felt compelled to put on record his recollections on the event involving Innoprise Corporation Sdn Bhd and a public listed company the year earlier.
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He said his singling out Musa, who was then the Deputy Chairman of the Yayasan Sabah Board of Trustees, was because he (Musa) single handedly did a very courageous thing by repeatedly rejecting the deal in spite of endorsement of the State Cabinet. "I accepted the decision of the Board of Trustees as the final custodian of the assets of Yayasan Sabah to reject the proposal." Sakaran also said Yayasan Sabah is an institution that has assisted thousands of Sabahans and this noble objective for which it was set up should never be placed at a disadvantage now or in the future.Meanwhile, incumbent Minister in the Prime Minister's Department in charge of the Economic Planning Unit Datuk Seri Abdul Rahman Dahlan, said the revelation by two former Yayasan Sabah executives about the background into the controversial deal should make Sabahans realise who actually defended the interests of Sabahans through an institution which is close to the people's hearts.
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"After listening to the explanation by the two former officers, it is clear that the individual who now goes around Sabah calling for change and saying he wants to save Sabah from Chief Minister Tan Sri Musa Aman, is the same person who nearly destroyed Sabah. "It is good that this matter is out so that the people know how NBT (North Borneo timber) attempted to buy Yayasan Sabah at a cheap price, what was reported in the newspaper (Daily Express) is true and the people ought to understand what has been revealed by the two former officers," he said.
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The revelation was made by former Yayasan Sabah Deputy Director Tengku Datuk Zainal Adlin and the then former Chief Executive Officer of its investment arm, Innoprise Corporation Sdn Bhd (ICSB) Datuk Abdul Kadir Damsal. They decided to break their silence on the agreement signed on Aug 5, 1995, whereby ICSB was supposed to acquire NBT via a reverse takeover. Their decision to go public was because it again became an issue in the current general election campaign with an attempt by Warisan to falsely depict Musa as ripping off Yayasan Sabah and treating it as his (Musa) personal property. State Community Development and Consumer Affairs Minister Datuk Jainab Ahmad said, "This is what we call not walking the talk." "He (Shafie) wants to change Sabah but for personal interest and we as cabinet ministers of Sabah should be doing our work. "When in Cabinet, Musa will say 'let's see how to help the people', he doesn't say 'how to help ourselves', that has been our way now and then… we walk the talk," she said. She urged the rakyat not to be swayed by the opposition, adding "We don't talk about others, but we also have to make clear who is right and who is wrong."She said since Musa became chief minister, so many good changes had been done for Sabah. "Youths in Sabah should also not be swayed by the opposition, support BN, even the 2050 National Transformation (TN50) is all about the youths, especially the younger generation and the people as a whole," she said. Sabah BN Backbenchers Club (BNSBC) Chairman Datuk Seri Abdul Rahim Ismail said Shafie's attempt to sell Yayasan Sabah is a well-known fact. "This guy (Shafie) tried to manipulate the timber business in YS for own benefit and cronies, at that point of time.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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