Sabah PKR slams fresh call for Philippines to claim state

The party's information chief, Ahmad Farid Sainuri, says Filipino senator Robin Padilla is trying to score political points by reviving the issue.

Sabah PKR information chief Ahmad Farid Sainuri said Robin Padilla’s call for the Philippines to revive its claim over the state was not grounded in reality.

Farid said the issue had long been settled and Sabah had helped form Malaysia in 1963.

“Padilla’s attempts to revive the claim highlights his tendency to rely on populist and nationalist sentiments to score political points without taking into consideration the implication it has on Malaysia and the Philippines’ bilateral ties,” he said in a statement.

It was reported earlier today that Padilla had called for his government to send emissaries to Malaysia to negotiate territorial claims over Sabah.

“Mr President, now is the time to revive our rightful claim to Sabah. We must act now and send our emissaries. North Borneo is already rich in oil resources,” he was quoted as saying.

Farid pointed out that in 2023, the Hague Court of Appeal dismissed a bid by eight descendants of the former sultanate to enforce a US$15 billion arbitration award against the Malaysian government.

In December last year, the Paris Court of Appeal also annulled a US$14.9 billion (RM61.38 billion) “final award” involving the so-called heirs of the defunct Sulu sultanate and ordered them to pay €200,000 (RM957,140) in costs to Malaysia, he said.

He said these proved that attempts by certain quarters to lay claim to Sabah were futile.

“These developments (court findings) close the door to those who attempt to manipulate the issue,” he said, adding that those who continue to question the matter were irresponsible as it could disrupt regional harmony.

The Philippine claim on Sabah is based on the argument that the British North Borneo Company did not have sovereign rights, and the British government did not acquire sovereignty from Spain under the Protocol of 1885 nor from the British North Borneo Company under the Protectorate Agreement of 1888.

Last month, Warisan president Shafie Apdal rejected fresh claims by the Philippines over Sabah, saying the state’s position within Malaysia is “settled and not negotiable”.

The former Sabah chief minister said this in response to the Philippine department of foreign affairs’ maritime affairs spokesman, Rogelio Villanueva, who said the country maintained its sovereignty claim over Sabah.