John Ambrose
KOTA KINABALU: Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) has slammed Warisan’s renewed pitch for a major railway project to be built in the whole of Sabah, as a political replay, which the party never substantiated the promise while in power.
GRS Supreme Council Member Datuk John Ambrose said voters need to treat the Warisan’s railway proposal with caution, and not to fall for the revived proposal, saying the opposition is merely recycling grand promises it failed to deliver when it held power.
“Warisan should explain its own record before criticising others, noting that discussions on a 175-km Kota Kinabalu–Kudat railway line during the Warisan’s 2018–2020 administration never progressed beyond feasibility talks.
“Sabahans should not be misled. Warisan talked about rail expansion before, but nothing concrete happened.
“Although Shafie did admit that Warisan failed to realise it because it would have cost the government RM5.2 billion, if he thought it was important for Sabah, then why stopped there?
“Now they are trying to repackage the same ideas without telling how they’re going to do that. And if it’s going to cost a lot more, which I believe it would, where would he get the funds? From the federal government?,” he said in a statement here today.
John was commenting on a talk about Sabah’s long-delayed rail ambitions resurfaced when Shafie, in one of his election campaign speeches, claimed to have been told by a so-called China company that it could build a railway that connects major towns in Sabah in three to four years.
Shafie said Warisan previously halted the proposed project because it would have cost the state RM5.2 billion.
John said Warisan was again using big numbers to create political theatre.
“Even now, Warisan is highlighting proposals that were never formally adopted, funded or presented with a clear plan.
“If they could not implement the project when they were in government, why should Sabahans trust the same promise today?,” he said.
John said voters should focus on realistic development strategies rather than “feel-good promises.”
“Sabah deserves long-term planning, not recycled talking points,” he said.
Responding to criticism that GRS had also not built new railway lines, John said the coalition had taken practical and necessary steps during its administration.
He said this includes updating technical assessments for state rail expansion, reviewing alignment options for the proposed east coast connection and coordinating with the federal government on integrating Sabah’s needs into the early stages of the Trans-Borneo Railway study.
“Unlike Warisan, we did not make premature promises.
“We focused on getting the groundwork right, updating feasibility inputs, studying cost challenges and ensuring Sabah’s priorities were documented in federal discussions. Mega projects require careful planning, not slogans,” said John.
He added that GRS’ review efforts were part of a longer-term aim to secure federal co-funding for any future megaproject, given Sabah’s limited fiscal capacity.
“We moved the railway issue forward, but responsibly for we don’t want to mislead the people just to win this election.”
He said this is typical of Warisan, citing the termination of several long-term private water concession contracts in 2019 that caused operational disruptions.
He argued that the replacement firms lacked adequate experience, and that the state could not manage the treatment plants efficiently on its own thus contributing to worsening water supply issues.
“They also had to deal with heavy compensation payout and legal liabilities as signs of poor planning.”
John also pointed out how the Pan Borneo Highway faced delays and controversy largely stemming from the termination of the Project Delivery Partner (PDP) model by Warisan.
“I remember how Datuk Arthur Kurup, as Deputy Minister of Works then, also noted that delays were partly due to policy changes following the state government transition in 2018.
“He has advocated for alternative financing options like the Private Finance Initiative (PFI) and stressed the need for strong federal representation to ensure Sabah’s infrastructure development stays on track.
“These evidence show the kind of big decisions that Warisan did without careful consideration of their consequences to the state and people. And now Shafie is talking reviving the railway project plan that he himself admitted of failing and blamed having no money to do it,” he said.
