KOTA KINABALU, June 15 — MPs from Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) are urging the federal government to launch an investigation into former attorney general (AG) Tan Sri Tommy Thomas for a letter he wrote to the Sulu claimants’ lawyers in 2019.
The six MPs — Keningau MP Datuk Seri Jeffrey Kitingan, Papar MP Datuk Armizan Mohd Ali, Batu Sapi MP Khairul Firdaus Akbar Khan, Ranau MP Datuk Jonathan Yasin, Sipitang MP Datuk Matbali Musah and Tawau MP Lo Su Fui — thanked Putrajaya for its action so far and urged that a follow-up be conducted.
“We are asking the government to further investigate the actions of the former attorney general, who, without Cabinet approval, sent a letter to the claimants’ lawyer dated September 19, 2019.
“This was revealed in the government’s response to the Dewan Rakyat on March 28, 2023. Our call is in line with GRS’ stance since the beginning, challenging the former attorney general in handling the issues of unfounded claims,” they said in a statement here today.
The MPs were referring to the legal suit filed by nine GRS leaders against the former AG in the Kota Kinabalu High Court last August.
In the joint statement today, they expressed their full support for Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s firm stance in dealing with claims by the purported heirs of the defunct Sulu Sultanate over Sabah.
They affirmed the stance of taking legal action against any party involved in the claims, including possible criminal charges against Malaysian citizens who may be cahooting with the claimants and undermining the country’s interests and security.
The MPs also called on the government to conduct further investigations into the actions of any party that facilitated the manipulation of mechanisms or international legal processes through the “forum shopping” approach.
They said there was a need to prevent any future unilateral actions by any party involving the state’s territorial integrity and sovereignty and urged bilateral discussions between the federal and state government on these matters.
Earlier this week, Anwar said the government will not hesitate to take legal action against any parties, including Malaysians, who give any form of support to or collaborate with the Sulu claimants.
On June 6, Malaysia secured a landmark victory when the Paris Court of Appeal set aside a US$15 billion (RM69 billion) partial award in a case brought by the self-proclaimed heirs against Malaysia.
The French appellate court had ruled that the Spanish arbitral tribunal, which ordered Malaysia to pay the partial award, lacked jurisdiction in the case.
