By Shikin Louis
KUCHING, April 14: Sabah intends to emulate the Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) government’s development approach, particularly its ability to grow State revenue and deliver assistance to the people, says Domestic Trade and Costs of Living Minister Datuk Armizan Mohd Ali.
He said Sabah’s revenue stood at around RM4 billion in 2020, a figure that had remained unchanged for more than a decade before increasing to nearly RM7 billion within five years under the leadership of Chief Minister Datuk Seri Panglima Hajiji Noor.
In contrast, he noted that Sarawak’s revenue had already reached RM10 billion in 2020 and rose further to RM13.5 billion by 2025 — the highest among Malaysian states.
“I am a leader from Sabah, and I want to say this clearly — I am not ashamed to admit that we in Sabah want to follow Sarawak’s path,” he said when speaking during Jualan Rahmah Madani Programme (PJRM) held in Puncak Borneo last night (April 13). His speech recording was later shared with DayakDaily.
Armizan, who is the Papar MP, further said that, in his view, Sabah believes the best approach is to ensure political stability and stronger revenue growth, which would enable the government to better assist the people.
“If we in Sabah want to follow the good work of GPS and the Sarawak government, I’m not sure whether people in Sarawak would want to stop that momentum and discontinue the current political leadership. I’ll leave that to you,” he added.
He also noted that amid current global economic and energy-related uncertainties, prices of goods are expected to rise in the coming months due to factors beyond local control, including higher import costs.
In response, he said the federal government has increased subsidy allocations for essential fuels such as diesel, petrol and LPG to help cushion the impact on consumers.
“But which State government was the first to announce additional allocations to help the people? It was none other than the Sarawak government,” he pointed out.
Armizan reiterated that if Sabah were to emulate Sarawak’s successful approach, then it ultimately comes down to the people in Sarawak themselves choosing the best path forward — one that ensures political stability and continued focus on development for the benefit of the State and its people.
Also present were Puncak Borneo MP Datuk Willie Mongin, KPDN Enforcement director-general Datuk Azman Adam, KPDN Sarawak director Matthew Dominic Barin and Padawan Sub-district Officer Julius Scott Sapong. — DayakDaily
