We meet in court, Shafie tells Musa

“See you in court” was Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal’s response to Tan Sri Musa Aman’s demand for a RM1bil compensation and unconditional apology over a suit filed by Yayasan Sabah against Musa.

“The best place is in court for us to tell every detail,” Mohd Shafie told reporters after giving out aid to fire victims in Semporna yesterday.

“They have made a statement that they want to sue us for RM1bil. It’s okay, we meet in court. This (suit) is important for the people to know what happened to the resources of Yayasan Sabah,” he said.

Last Tuesday, Yayasan Sabah filed a RM872mil law suit against Musa in a bid to recover monies lost during his time as Yayasan Sabah board trustee chairman, when he was chief minister between 2003 and 2018.

After the revelation of the suit against Musa by Yayasan Sabah director Datuk Jamalul Kiram Mohd Zakaria, Musa countered by asking for RM1bil in damages via a letter of demand to Mohd Shafie and Yayasan trustees, along with an apology for what he called “slanderous claims”.

Yayasan Sabah is the state’s largest timber concession holder, which was set up in 1966 to develop the state through profits from timber and other businesses.

Former federal minister Datuk Seri Abdul Rahman Dahlan weighed in on the matter, saying the Yayasan suit was a smear campaign that “stinks of political vengeance”.

Abdul Rahman, who is also Tuaran Umno chief, said Musa was right to demand damages and an apology from Yayasan Sabah.

“The Warisan-led Sabah government is once again more focused on politicking than running the state, preferring to engage in mudslinging rather than reviving a dwindling state economy and improving the welfare of the people,” he said.