Jannie Lasimbang…DAP fought for and succeeded in restoring the words ‘Kerajaan Malaysia Jamin’ which at one time was missing from the plaque of the Oath Stone.
PENAMPANG : – The intention of the leaders of Pakatan Harapan, including Datuk Ewon Benedict, Datuk Ginger Phoong, myself, and many other members of the public who went to the Keningau Oath Stone on 25 January was purely to pay respect and to honour the Oath Stone that we hold sacred and with very high regard.
“If anyone, especially the bobohizan as spiritual leaders and the Ketua Adat, consider our action of honouring the oath stone as not in harmony with the adat, then we sincerely apologize.
“I remain committed to what the Oath Stone represents, and I will continue to assist the orang asal to secure their rights to their lands and to gain respect for their adat and dignity.
These are in line with the three government guarantees in the Oath Stone – that is for Sabah to have freedom of religion, that the lands in Sabah are controlled by the Sabah government, and that the adat are respected and preserved by the government as the basis for Sabah joining the Federation in September 1963 through the Malaysia Agreement (MA63).
“I and the Democratic Action Party (DAP) have always regarded the Keningau Batu Sumpah, which was erected on 31 August 1964, a year after the formation of the Federation of Malaysia, as the basis for the MA1963 and expresses the essence of the special rights of the orang asal of Sabah.
DAP fought for and succeeded in restoring the words ‘Kerajaan Malaysia Jamin’ which at one time was missing from the plaque of the Oath Stone. DAP also raised awareness on the importance of the Oath Stone, and a campaign starting in 2014 also succeeded in erecting nine replicas of the Oath Stone in several districts including in Penampang, Merotai, Keningau, Tenom, Inanam, Sook and Matunggong