Shafie Apdal wants Sabah claim issue to be solved through G-to-G platform

Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal has urged the federal government to have a government-to-government talk with the Philippines government through an Asean platform to solve the country's never-ending claim on Sabah.

He said the issue should be solved completely so that it would not arise again.

"We don’t want any dispute to happen when this kind of thing is considered a small matter, if we don't stop it, it will escalate for the worse,” he told a press conference at the Sabah State Administrative Centre here today.

Mohd Shafie added that the issue should not be used as a political agenda especially when the state election is nearing.

Yesterday, Deputy Foreign Minister Datuk Kamarudin Jaafar said the proposal to include Sabah and 200 miles of Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) in a map in the passport of Philippines is not a new move nor is it an official stand of the republic’s government.

-- BERNAMA