Sabah govt seeks Wisma Putra’s firm stand on Philippine map issue

KOTA KINABALU: The Sabah state government has asked Wisma Putra to issue a stern warning to the Philippines Government over the printing of the Sabah map on Philippine passports.

Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal said the Philippines Ambassador to Malaysia must be summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to explain the matter.

It is regrettable that the Philippines has acted contrary to the Asean spirit and fundamental principle of mutual respect for the independence, sovereignty, equality, territorial integrity and national identity of each Asean member state Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal

He said Sabahans had been assured of full security and protection when the Federation of Malaysia was formed in 1963, and as such Wisma Putra must now react strongly as the act was a violation of Sabah’s sovereignty and an unnecessary provocation.

“Sabah is a sovereign state and this has been settled a long time ago,” he said in a statement here yesterday while also calling on Wisma Putra to state its stand firmly.

On Sunday, the media reported that the Philippines House Committee on Foreign Affairs had approved a substitute measure which requires the printing of the Philippine map, including its 200-mile exclusive economic zone (EEZ) and Sabah, on Philippine passports.

Mohd Shafie stressed that Sabah is an independent state within the Federation of Malaysia via the Malaysia Agreement of 1963, which has been duly annotated and accepted by the United Nations.

As such, he added that the Philippines does not and never had any basis, historical or legal, to make a claim on Sabah.

“It is regrettable that the Philippines has acted contrary to the Asean spirit and fundamental principle of mutual respect for the independence, sovereignty, equality, territorial integrity and national identity of each Asean member state,” he said. — Bernama