By BORNEOTODAY REPORTERS
KOTA KINABALU: Shafie Apdal has turned the tables on his critics questioning his ancestry when on Saturday he inquired of them – do you know where the grave of their great-grandfather is located.
The Parti Warisan Sabah said no one need question about his roots as he is a native of the east coast district of Semporna.
“I am proud to be born a Sabahan,” Shafie who is also the Member of Parliament for Semporna told reporters after a walkabout at the Foh Sang commercial area in Luyang in conjunction with the upcoming Chinese New Year celebrations.
“My great-grandfather is buried in Semporna. I can show anyone his grave.
“But I want those who question my ancestry to tell me whether they know where the grave of their great-grandfather is located,” he said with a twinkle in his eye.
Shafie was asked to comment on remarks apparently made by Anifah Aman, the Foreign Minister cum Kimanis MP which implied that Shafie was not a Sabahan.
A reporter had asked Shafie why he felt this issue kept coming up, claiming the remarks were made by Anifah in his speech on Friday at a gathering with Chinese and KDM people from Kimanis at a hotel here.
Shafie also told the media that Parti Warisan is working towards finalising the matter of seat distribution with Pakatan Harapan in Sabah.
He said it will be resolved certainly before polling day but stressed their focus right now is on toppling the Barisan Nasional government.
“We are working towards it but it is not simply about who gets where. We want to give what the people want and that is to change the government.
“In order to do that, we must have winnable seats and winnable candidates,” he added.
Sabah Pakatan Harapan chief, Christina Liew who was also present concurred with Shafie.
“We will work something out before we go to the battlefield,” she said.
Meanwhile, the response from the traders and public at the market to Warisan was encouraging.
As he distributed oranges and extended Chinese New Year greetings, many expressed their unhappiness to Shafie especially over the infamous GST.
“It is clear the people want change. One of the loudest complaints has been about the GST.
“Times are bad. Traders are losing customers and customers are buying less,” he said.
