Give Jeffrey a chance, Sabah Chinese urged

By Luke Rintod of FMT

The maverick politician
may have found the person
he needs to help him win
over a community that
distrusts him for switching
parties too often.

KOTA KINABALU: One of Jeffrey Kitingan’s most difficult tasks as a politician is to win the trust of the Chinese community, and he may have found the help he needs in consumer-rights advocate Ronny Yapp.

Yapp, a respected figure in the community for his work with the now defunct Consumers Association of Sabah and Labuan (Cash), released a media statement yesterday calling on Sabah Chinese to back Jeffrey in his new role as chairman of the Sabah chapter of the State Reform Party (STAR).

He described Jeffrey as the “single most consistent person in his principles” among those claiming to fight for the rights of Sabah as a member of the Malaysian Federation.

Jeffrey is a tough sell to the Chinese because his history of moving in and out of political organisations gives them the impression that he is fickle.

Yapp said he once shared that belief, but changed it recently after consulting with friends and making a “thorough examination” of Jeffrey’s political struggle.

“I have since found out that Jeffrey is the single most consistent person in his principles and in his struggles for Sabah’s rights and autonomy within the ambit of all the pledges prior to the Malaysia Agreement of 1963,” he said.

“Unlike others, he has never wavered in his struggle for Sabah’s rights and the true Malaysia framework that we must have, even though he was incarcerated under the draconian ISA (Internal Security Act).

“What astonished me was that he continued to voice out the same issues without fear even after being jailed for three years.”

Yapp was among the thousands who turned up to witness the launch of Sabah STAR.

He advised Sabahans to set aside their prejudice against Jeffrey and try to understand his struggle. They would then see that his fight was for the good of future generations, he added.

He said Jeffrey would resign from a political party only when he saw that remaining in the organisation would require him to compromise his principles or his struggle for Sabah rights.

“Today, in STAR, he still speaks the same language. He could have easily retired and enjoyed life as an academic or an ordinary citizen, but he has chosen to fight for us Sabahans.”

He urged the Chinese in Sabah to give Jeffrey a “chance to prove himself”.

“I hope genuine Sabahans, especially our Chinese community, will lend their hand to this man of conviction at the coming elections,” he said.