KOTA KINABALU: Sabah police commissioner Omar Mammah has made a plea for all parties to cease making statements that could cause discord among the races in Sabah.
He said racial discord was the biggest concern at present, adding that there were some parties who were raising racial tension in the state .
“We need to know that there are many races in Sabah and we have to respect each other,” he told reporters after paying a courtesy call to Sabah Chief Minister Shafie Apdal at the state administrative complex, here, today.
Omar said he preferred not to comment on the recent racially-charged statement made by self-styled Sulu Sultan Mohd Akjan Ali and the war of words that erupted between Sabah politicians and Akjan recently.
Some politicians had hit out at Akjan for saying in a video that went viral that Suluk and Bajau were first-class natives while other ethnic groups like the KadazanDusunMurut (KDMs) were in a lower class under the Sabah constitution.
Omar said he had kept quiet over the matter as he did not want to see his words perceived as instigation or that he was taking sides.
“All of us have responsibilities to ensure harmony among Sabahans and as long as we are Sabahans, all of us have rights, there is no such thing as first or second class,” said Omar, adding that he hoped the issue would not be prolonged.
It is understood that the police had received two reports against Akjan and had classified the case under Section 505 under the Penal Code for inciting.
The police are believed to have also submitted a report to the state attorney-general and are waiting for further instructions.
Recently, Sabah opposition leader Jeffrey Kitingan had questioned the state authorities for not taking action against Akjan who, he said, had clearly made a threat against the KDMs.
Earlier, Omar said the purpose of his courtesy call to the chief minister was to inform the latter over his upcoming retirement in mid-Febuary.
Omar, who has served the force for over 30 years, became Sabah police commissioner in September 2018.
He added that he was most proud of his fight against drugs.
“I have instructed all 25 district police chief to identity five locations in their respective districts with the most drug-related cases and ordered them to continuously hold raids and drug-prevention efforts.
“Our efforts had won us an award in 2019 and we have an 80% success rate. I hope my successor will continue to end all the drug-related problems in Sabah,” he said. -FMT