Labuan MP says he still supports Warisan
KOTA KINABALU: Labuan Member of Parliament Datuk Rozman Isli has denied a report by Astro Awani quoting him as saying 'Tiada Masalah Jadi Wakil Rakyat Bebas' (no issue with being an Independent elected representative).
Rozman in a statement stressed that the report was inaccurate and did not reflect what was actually said when he was interviewed by the reporter.
“What I said was that there is no problem if Labuan was led by any elected representative including one who is Independent because development for the duty-free island must continue.
"I also explained to the reporter that I left Umno for Parti Warisan Sabah (Warisan) after the 14th general election because I cared about the LabuanMenumbok bridge project which had been approved as part of the Pan Borneo Highway project,” he said.
However, under the previous Pakatan Harapan government, the project was changed to a
Private Financing Initiative (PFI), he lamented, adding that he now realises that development for Labuan does not depend on which party its Member of Parliament is in.
Rozman stressed that his support is with Warisan and he made that fact clear to the reporter interviewing him.
“Therefore there is no issue of me implying that I want to be an Independent Member of Parliament. My support is for Warisan because the State Government which it leads is good for the Sabah-Labuan relationship.
“Labuan can be represented by any party whether the government, opposition or independent but the most suitable is an elected representative who is from the party that administers the state. This is why I chose to be in Warisan,” he stressed.
Rozman regretted that the news article was made to create a sensationalized issue when he had said that he was not quitting Warisan.
“When the reporter asked me if I was thinking of quitting Warisan, I replied clearly that I would not jump and that I have no plans to do so.
"It may have been easy for some to do so but not me as I am still with Warisan and want to be with the party to fight for Sabah's rights that are denied by the Federal Government,” he said.