Warisan’s youth wing has released a set of official figures comparing the deportation records under the Warisan Plus and Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) administrations, leaving the issue for the public to examine the facts behind the allegations made against the party.
Warisan Youth Chief Terrence Au said the party was compelled to respond after GRS leaders accused Warisan of failing to manage Sabah’s undocumented immigrant problem.
He added that the long-standing migrant issue has now been weaponised by GRS operatives, despite realities on the ground being far from the accusations.
“What we see is that Hajiji said recently the opposition is always spreading slander against GRS-PH. But for us, we are simply presenting the facts that exist,” Au said.
“We must turn the question back to Hajiji: as the Chief Minister and leader of GRS, is he willing to clearly challenge the facts that exist?”
Au cited 31,578 undocumented migrants deported during Warisan’s 22-month administration, compared to 28,738 over nearly five years under GRS-PH.
He also noted Sabah’s non-citizen population surged from 821,400 in 2019 to 1,083,400 in 2024, with a sharp jump of 279,200 individuals between 2023 and 2024.
The SMART Sabah programme, Au said, had registered 107,717 foreigners, allegedly collecting RM64 million in fees, with its top management also linked closely to GRS top leaders.
He stressed these figures were compiled from the State Assembly’s written replies, the Department of Statistics, and multiple credible media reports.
Au acknowledged the illegal immigrant narrative had damaged Warisan, pointing out that GRS’ top leaders now avoid the issue, leaving it to smaller figures and social media operatives.
“It’s interesting that the top GRS leaders have largely gone silent. Now it is their smaller leaders and cyber troops keeping the old accusations alive,” he said.
He recalled that GRS top leaders previously portrayed Warisan’s Sabah Temporary Pass (PSS) initiative as a “backdoor to citizenship” — a claim which, though denied by Warisan, hurt them during the 2020 election.
But in two recent statements — from the KDCA Youth Council chairman and SAPP Youth Chief Jamain Sarudin — called for probes into Warisan leaders, particularly, party president Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal over identity documentation issues identified as the the support letters.
Warisan Vice President Terrence Siambun said many communities, particularly the KDM, were vulnerable then due to lack of understanding about citizenship processes previously.
“At that time, many did not understand the actual process concerning citizenship and documentation, especially within the KDM community.
“That is why it became easy for them to believe the accusations played up by GRS leaders then,” Siambun said.
Towards this end, Au said Warisan Youth, along with its Wanita and Wirawati wings, will soon launch a statewide petition demanding greater accountability on Sabah’s immigration management. — April 28, 2025
