PERKASA has blasted Sabah MCA deputy chairman Francis Goh for spinning Ibrahim Ali’s statement on Sunday about minority rights.

“Goh had clearly twisted Ibrahim Ali’s words, by saying there is ‘no room for Ketuanan Melayu in Sabah’.

“Ali had never said that but instead demanded the minority races in Sabah should stop making nonsensical demands that were against national policies and the federal constitution,” said the Malay rights group’s national youth leader Burhanuddin Ruslan.

Burhanuddin said if Goh had problems understanding and speaking Malay, he should not have been granted Malaysian citizenship, yet alone respond to Ibrahim’s words.

Yesterday, Goh warned Ibrahim to stop spreading racial hatred in Sabah, stating there was no room for Malay supremacy in Sabah.

Goh had also defended Putrajaya’s bid to consider recognising the Unified Certificate Examination, saying that 55% of the pupils in Chinese schools in Sabah were from the state’s indigenous ethnic groups, primarily the KadazanDusun Murut, because they realised  the importance of Mandarin. 

Burhanuddin said there was no way Goh could have predicted the future of Sabah if it had not joined Sarawak and the peninsula to form Malaysia in 1963.

“If we study history, Sabah could have been part of the Philippines, which are going through tough times at the moment.”

He said when Sabah agreed to form Malaysia, it was not excluded from adhere to the policies of the federal government.  

“If there is any dissatisfaction, the state government discuss its grouses with the federal government,” said Burhanuddin, adding that Goh’s statement was nothing more than to fish for support in view of the 14 general election.

Meanwhile, Rekan Husin, the president of Perkasa’s Sabah chapter, warned MCA not to meddle in the Malay interest group’s struggle.

“MCA should not have spun the words of our national president. Goh should know that the indigenous peoples of Sabah are the majority,” he said.

Rekan also questioned the struggle of MCA Sabah for the Pribumi voters in the state, stating that Sabah Perkasa membership now stood around 85,000, which was more than the members of the Chinese-based party.

“We will continue to fight for the rights of the pribumi in Sabah regardless of their religion. We have rights in Sabah. Perkasa is a national non-governmental body focused on the education and economic well-being of the indigenous people, with active branches nationwide,” Rekan said after launching the Perkasa Libaran annual general meeting recently.  

He said if Perkasa was outlawed in Sabah, MCA should also be outlawed, as it doesn’t want to assist the indigenous people’s rights. – October 10, 2017.