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KUCHING, June 25: Activist and lawyer Asiah Abdul Jalil made negative comments about Sabah and Sarawak without actually having lived and experienced life in the two regions herself, says Susan Clement Ingun, a political secretary to the Sarawak Premier.
She said it is also sad to know that Asiah tried to get other Malaysians into siding with her views and remarks after hurting the feelings of Sabahans and Sarawakians.
“It shows her mentality is similar to a comedian who went viral recently who made fun of the MH370 tragedy and regarded Malaysia as a third world country few weeks ago in her show,” she said in a statement today.
Susan said although Asiah is entitled to give her views and comments about Sabah and Sarawak, her opinion does not represent the majority of Malaysians on the peninsula.
She also said Asiah’s action has received backlash from most of the West Malaysians who have been working and residing in Sabah and Sarawak for years.
“As a fellow Malaysian, her negative comment and bad view of Sabah and Sarawak is unpatriotic because you are publicly hurting your own family members (Sabah, Sarawak and all the states in Peninsular Malaysia are one family under Malaysia) in front of the whole world,” Susan added.
Susan’s statement was in response to a post by Aisah on her Facebook page dated June 23.
Among others, Aisah said if she was a civil servant assigned to serve in Sabah or Sarawak, she would resign within 24 hours. As a West Malaysian, she said, she saw the two regions as unsuitable to further a career, to plan a family or raise school-going children, and would put mental and emotional health at risk.
She also claimed that 60 years after independence with Malaysia, Sabah and Sarawak are still unsuccessful in producing their own State citizens who can fill vacancies in their respective States, and are still reliant on West Malaysians to serve there.
She questioned how Sabah and Sarawak would survive if they were to leave Malaysia as even though they have much resources, they don’t have quality citizens and thus, it would be difficult for them to progress and be independent. — DayakDaily
