Ghapur laments the imbalance in posts

Datuk Seri Ghapur Salleh says Sabah and Sarawak are the backbone of the BN

NST (13/5/08): As talk of defections continued in the Dewan Rakyat, the member for Kalabakan, Datuk Seri Ghapur Salleh, did not help matters when he "explained" how this was best done.

"We have never jumped. We can move by simply forming a new party. Then we can decide where we want to sit... here or there," he said, gesturing in the direction of the opposition and backbenchers.

Ghapur, speaking during the debate on the Royal Address, complained that Sabah had been sidelined by the federal government.

He had opposition MPs cheering when his call for justice sounded like a call to Parti Keadilan Rakyat, or Keadilan, which means "justice".

"Kita di Sabah mahu keadilan (We in Sabah want justice)," he said to laughter from the opposition ranks.
However, Ghapur quickly added tongue-in-cheek that what he wanted was not the PKR, but justice in the context of what was right for Sabah.

He said Sabah not only lagged behind the rest of Malaysia in terms of development but its people were treated as second-class citizens.

Ghapur said the statement by Datuk Anifah Aman, the member for Kimanis, last week was apt as it reflected the situation in the state.

Last week, Anifah told the House that there was nothing wrong in defecting to the opposition if the BN continued to treat Sabah with little respect.

Ghapur said Sabah and Sarawak were the backbone of the Barisan Nasional now, but the way the coalition had treated the two states had caused unhappiness among the people.

"Without Sabah and Sarawak, there would be no BN government. We have saved the Barisan Nasional," he said in reference to the 56 seats won by the BN in Sabah and Sarawak.

"But what we (Sabah) got in return was three ministerial positions. There are double standards in the BN."

He said the portfolios offered were insignificant in light of Sabah BN's contribution. "We were given a portfolio to take care of the museums. Is this fair?" he asked, referring to the Unity, Culture, Arts and Heritage portfolio held by Datuk Shafie Apdal.

The other ministers are Bernard Dompok (Minister in the Prime Minister's Department) and Datuk Maximus Ongkili (Science, Technology and Innovation).

"There is a state which can count seven ministers while another that was lost to the opposition has four ministers," he said, referring to Johor and Selangor respectively.

Ghapur wanted this imbalance in the power equation to be addressed by the government.