Govt determining if Sulu ‘heirs’ affiliated with armed group behind 2013 Lahad Datu invasion

KUALA LUMPUR, March 14 — The Sulu Secretariat is currently investigating whether the self-proclaimed Sulu “heirs” have any affiliation with the Royal Sulu Forces (RSF) that the government considers a terrorist group after it invaded Lahad Datu more than a decade ago.

The special secretariat under the purview of the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) said that the legal action mounted by the claimants, especially in relation to recent commercial arbitration, is not justified under the law and could even directly challenge the sovereignty of the country.

“Any action taken by this claimant through commercial arbitration at the present time is mala fide, given that the Sulu side in 1939 had approached the North Borneo High Court over a dispute that arose at the time.

“The Malaysian government asserts that the claimant’s rights and claims are invalid, nullified and terminated through the exercise of the right to self-determination by the people of Sabah via consultations with the Cobbold Commission in 1962 and the formation of the Federation of Malaysia in 1963,” it said in a statement today.

It also said that the 1878 agreement, which has been used as the basis for the arbitration carried out in Spain and France, does not have any arbitration clause and is not a commercial contract.

The secretariat said that the dispute involves national sovereignty and Malaysia has never at any time waived its sovereign immunity.

“The arbitrator has no authority to resolve the matter brought by the claimant. This matter is in line with the order issued by the Sabah High Court on behalf of the Malaysian Government on January 14, 2020,” it added.

Yesterday, it was reported that the government is investigating whether any Malaysians are helping the Sulu “heirs” in their effort to claim parts of Sabah.

Law Minister Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said said that the government was not ruling out the possibility that so-called insiders might have masterminded the group’s efforts, based on their relentless attempts to claim Malaysian government-linked companies (GLC) abroad.