KOTA KINABALU: The Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) government has again been urged to make a stand regarding the recent standard operating procedure (SOP) ruckus.
This follows Defence Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri’s announcement on Saturday that five states are now in phase two of the National Recovery Plan.
Sabah, however, is not part of these five states, which suggests that the Federal Government has no intention of loosening the SOP.
Warisan vice president Datuk Junz Wong said in a statement the party had openly backed GRS’s efforts to pursue Sabah’s autonomous rights, for the benefit of Sabahans.
But the decision ultimately, rests in the hands of the state administration.
He said Warisan’s stand on Sabah’s autonomous rights is very clear.
“Warisan will support all efforts to pursue Sabah’s autonomous rights, regardless who the government is.
“That is why we supported GRS’s attempts to pursue Sabah’s rights to make our own decision.
“In fact, Warisan also feels that Ismail Sabri should not have disrespected the position of the Chief Minister of Sabah by telling him off publicly.
“But now, the Federal Government has once again indicated its hesitation to loosen the SOP in Sabah.
“So it is GRS’s duty as the Sabah State Government to make a stand.”
Junz who was also a former member of the Warisan Cabinet, added the state administration should not throw the people into a limbo over its indecisiveness.
“As Warisan is not part of the state administration, we are not privy of certain information.
“We can only support, but the decision has to be made by GRS.
“GRS has access to the Health Ministry’s data and other data like the recent Delta variant.
“So my advice to GRS is to deliberate carefully and make a firm decision for the benefit of Sabahans.”
Junz said during the Warisan era, the Warisan government led by Datuk Seri Panglima Shafie Apdal micro-managed the Covid-19 situation.
“We also had a Minister of Health to go through the details.
“Maybe GRS has a different way of doing things now. I have no idea. Regardless what the GRS way is, a firm stand must be made so that the people are not thrown into a state of limbo,” he said.
Meanwhile, former chief minister Datuk Seri Salleh Said Keruak has questioned why there was no news yet on the new SOPs requested by Sabah, amid the announcement that five peninsular states will be moving into Phase 2 of the national recovery plan.
“But I am surprised that there is still no news on the state government’s request for new SOPs until now,” he said in his Facebook account.
“This has caused confusion and restlessness, which should not have happened.
“It is hoped that the federal government takes notice and respects our request in Sabah,” added the Usukan assemblyman.
Kota Kinabalu member of parliament Chan Foong Hin said the state has fulfilled two out of the three key indicators — the reduction in the average number of daily cases and usage of intensive care unit (ICU) beds — to warrant a shift into Phase 2 of the NRP.
However, he said the state was far from achieving the vaccination rate, with less than 10% of the population having completed both doses of the vaccine.
“That’s why Sabah was left out from the announcement just now,” he said.