Closed-door briefing on Sulu Sultanate claims irks Warisan MPs

KOTA KINABALU - Warisan MPs are not satisfied with the closed-door briefing over the issue of the Sulu Sultanate claims on Thursday night.

The MPs reiterated that the issue should be debated on Dewan Rakyat, even though the motion was previously rejected.

Sepanggar MP Datuk Mohd Azis Jamman said many questions were raised in the meeting regarding the issue, but it was not answered by the government.

"We still feel the need for this to be debated and argued in Parliament even though we heard the brief yesterday.

"Truthfully, we are not satisfied because many of our questions were unanswered but maybe it was due to the time factor.

“Because of that, there is a need for it to be debated and as an MP, I would like to state to the government that we know our limits.

"We will surely not voice out or debate a matter that could interfere with our strategy in fighting the heirs of the Sulu Sultanate," he said when met by reporters in the Kota Kinabalu International Airport (KKIA) here on Friday.

Mohd Aziz said the meeting was only related to the string of events and claims made by the heirs of the Sulu Sultanate and was not a secret.

"Even Sulu knows in terms of its historical timeline, which is why we want the debate to take place because if it was the Parliament in the Philippines, they would be openly voicing that they will claim Sabah because it is a part of their territory.

"So, yesterday we said that if the Philippines had openly voiced the matter as if they did not respect the sovereignty of our country, why does the Malaysian Parliament feel like a loser in defending itself (national sovereignty)," he said.

Meanwhile, Kota Belud MP Isnaraissah Munirah Majilis hoped that there would be a positive reaction from the government through the meeting held.

"I think Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal (Warisan President) last night had highlighted several opinions that could be debated. I hope that the government accepts it for us to address this security issue," he said.

Earlier, a closed-door briefing had taken place on Thursday night at a prominent hotel in the capital attended by the MPs, Attorney-General Tan Sri Idrus Harun, Prime Minister's Department (Sabah and Sarawak Affairs) Minister Datuk Seri Dr Maximus Ongkili and several other Cabinet Ministers.

The session had reportedly been put under the Official Secrets Act 1972 (OSA) to ensure its confidentiality.