The Sabah Foundation ( ms, Yayasan Sabah) or Yayasan Sabah Group (YSG) is a state sanctioned organisation that was developed to promote educational and economic opportunities for its people. It was founded by
Tun Mustapha Harun and manages a diverse portfolio of resources and issues.
History
The
Kota Kinabalu
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = From top, left to right, bottom:Kota Kinabalu skyline, Wawasan intersection, Tun Mustapha Tower, Kota Kinabalu Coastal Highway, the Kota Kinabalu City Mosque, the Wism ...
-based
think-tank
A think tank, or policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governmental org ...
was allowed to be established by 1966 Sabah State Legislative Assembly Enactment No. 8. The foundation was created in 1966 by
Tun Mustapha Harun create educational opportunities for the country's
Malaysian people
Malaysians are nationals and citizens who are identified with the country of Malaysia. Although citizens make up the majority of Malaysians, non-citizen residents and overseas Malaysians may also claim a Malaysian identity.
The country is h ...
. Four years later its scope was expanded to include economic and social advancement. It also coordinates distribution of resources in the event of a natural disaster to those in need. It was Tun Mustapa Harun's further goal "to promote
Malayisation
Malayisation (Commonwealth spelling) or Malayization (North American and Oxford spelling) is a process of assimilation and acculturation, that involves acquisition ( ms, Masuk Melayu, literally "embracing Malayness") or imposition ( ms, Pemelay ...
consciousness amongst the people of Sabah."
1966–1975
In 1967, coinciding with the formation of the Sabah Foundation, the Ministry of Natural Resources was abolished. The government gave the foundation 3,300 acres of land and a grant of 1 million
ringgit
The Malaysian ringgit (; plural: ringgit; symbol: RM; currency code: MYR; Malay name: ''Ringgit Malaysia''; formerly the Malaysian dollar) is the currency of Malaysia. It is divided into 100 ''sen'' (formerly ''cents''). The ringgit is issued ...
to fund the start-up of the organisation. In 1970, Sabah Foundation was tasked, through a 100-year lease, of managing the 855,000 hectares of
virgin forest
''Virgin Forest'' is a 1985 Filipino period film directed by Peque Gallaga. A self-described B-movie, it stars Sarsi Emmanuel, who plays a barrio lass of Chinese ancestry; Miguel Rodriguez, as a Filipino-Spanish illustrado; and, Abel Jurado, wh ...
. Nineteen years later their total holdings were 1.07 million hectares. Sabah's total
land area
This is a list of the world's countries and their dependent territories by land, water and total area, ranked by total area.
Entries in this list include, but are not limited to, those in the ISO 3166-1 standard, which includes sovereign s ...
is 7.4 million
hectare
The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100-metre sides (1 hm2), or 10,000 m2, and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. An acre is a ...
s.
Tun Mustapha withheld earnings is should have paid to the state and used the fund for political purposes, providing proceeds to the electorate and to support his political associates.
Harold Crouch
Harold Crouch (born 1940) is an Australian political science scholar and author. He has been described as "one of the pre-eminent scholars of Indonesian politics." Most of his books are published under "Harold Crouch".
Early and personal life
...
wrote of Tun Mustapha's resulting political power:
In late 1975 Tun Mustapha was forced by the government to resign. The Sabah State government then pulled the foundation under the authority of the government.
The foundation over-harvested its timber natural resources to fund its political agenda.
1975−1985
Although the foundation was no longer a private entity, the state government, led by the
Berjaya
Sabah People's United Front or in Malay ''Parti Bersatu Rakyat Jelata Sabah'' is more commonly known by its abbreviation BERJAYA, was a political party based in the state of Sabah, Malaysia. BERJAYA was formed by former United Sabah National Orga ...
political party, did not have the control that they expected because financial investments continued to be controlled by Innoprise, an entity and within the foundation responsible for managing its investments.
The Sabah Foundation's large budget allows it to continued to manage a diverse range of activities, including
reforestation
Reforestation (occasionally, reafforestation) is the natural or intentional restocking of existing forests and woodlands (forestation) that have been depleted, usually through deforestation, but also after clearcutting.
Management
A debate ...
,
hospitality
Hospitality is the relationship between a guest and a host, wherein the host receives the guest with some amount of goodwill, including the reception and entertainment of guests, visitors, or strangers. Louis de Jaucourt, Louis, chevalier de J ...
and
tourism industry
Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tours. The World Tourism Organization defines tourism mo ...
, agro-plantation,
shipping
Freight transport, also referred as ''Freight Forwarding'', is the physical process of transporting Commodity, commodities and merchandise goods and cargo. The term shipping originally referred to transport by sea but in American English, it h ...
,
real estate development
Real estate development, or property development, is a business process, encompassing activities that range from the renovation and re-lease of existing buildings to the purchase of raw Real Estate, land and the sale of developed land or parcels ...
,
biotechnology
Biotechnology is the integration of natural sciences and engineering sciences in order to achieve the application of organisms, cells, parts thereof and molecular analogues for products and services. The term ''biotechnology'' was first used b ...
,
horticulture
Horticulture is the branch of agriculture that deals with the art, science, technology, and business of plant cultivation. It includes the cultivation of fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, herbs, sprouts, mushrooms, algae, flowers, seaweeds and no ...
,
fisheries
Fishery can mean either the enterprise of raising or harvesting fish and other aquatic life; or more commonly, the site where such enterprise takes place ( a.k.a. fishing ground). Commercial fisheries include wild fisheries and fish farms, both ...
and
food industry
The food industry is a complex, global network of diverse businesses that supplies most of the food consumed by the world's population. The food industry today has become highly diversified, with manufacturing ranging from small, traditiona ...
, and the
oil and gas industry
The petroleum industry, also known as the oil industry or the oil patch, includes the global processes of exploration, extraction, refining, transportation (often by oil tankers and pipelines), and marketing of petroleum products. The largest ...
.
It continued to wield political power, including state elections between 1978 and 1990.
1985−present
After the Berjaya and until 1994, the
Parti Bersatu Sabah
The United Sabah Party ( ms, Parti Bersatu Sabah, abbreviated PBS) is a political party of Sabah. The PBS was founded by Joseph Pairin Kitingan in 1985 and it is Sabah's oldest local party. In August 2020, PBS confirmed that they would be using ...
(PBS) political party gained control of the government, "in opposition to the national government".
In 1991 Jeffrey Kitingan, Sabah Foundation head, was detained under the
Internal Security Act Internal Security Act may refer to:
* Internal Security Act 1960, former Malaysian law
*Internal Security Act (Singapore)
* McCarran Internal Security Act, a United States federal law
*Suppression of Communism Act, 1950, a South African law, rename ...
for 31 months for "plotting the secession of Sabah from the Malaysian Foundation" and then fired from his position at the foundation. Charges of corruption were dropped when Jeffrey Kitigan left the PBS political party.
In 1994, the
United Malays National Organisation
The United Malays National Organisation (Malay: ; Jawi: ; abbreviated UMNO () or less commonly PEKEMBAR), is a nationalist right-wing political party in Malaysia. As the oldest continuous national political party within Malaysia (since its in ...
(UMNO) had political control. During this time Sabah Foundation continued its developmental efforts with little governmental intervention.
In 1994 a
Price Waterhouse
PricewaterhouseCoopers is an international professional services brand of firms, operating as partnerships under the PwC brand. It is the second-largest professional services network in the world and is considered one of the Big Four accounting ...
audit revealed that Sabah Foundation accounts were missing more than $1 billion, evidence of accusations of corruption. At that time, Innoprise had more than a dozen subsidiaries with little oversight. Based upon the audit results, Sabah Foundation was reorganised, governmental officials were to site on its board of trustees and Chief Minister
Datuk Salleh Tun Said chaired the board.
In 2012 allegations were brought against the foundation's former Chief Minister Musa Aman for embezzling over $90 million from the foundation.
In 2018, Shafie Apdal, Sabah Foundation chairman, ordered a full investigation into the financial affairs of Rakyat Berjaya, which is fully owned by the foundation.
Organisation
Sabah Foundation is now under the Sabah Government with three organisational divisions:
* Sapangar SDN. BHD
* Innoprise Corporation SDN. BHD
* KKYS SDN. BHD
Research library
Within Sabah Foundation's
Tun Mustapha Tower
Tun Mustapha Tower is a 122 metre, 30-story glass tower in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia. It was built in 1976 by Mori Building Company, a Japanese builder. The building was formerly named Yayasan Sabah Tower as it housed Sabah Foundation (Ya ...
headquarters complex is the Fuad Stephens Borneo Research Library, named for former Chief Minister
Tun Fuad Stephens
Muhammad Fuad Stephens, (born Donald Aloysius Marmaduke Stephens; 14 September 1920 – 6 June 1976) was a Malaysian politician who served as the 1st and 5th Chief Minister of Sabah from September 1963 to December 1964 and again briefly from A ...
. It was established with the support of the
National Library of Malaysia
The National Library of Malaysia (Malay: ''Perpustakaan Negara Malaysia'') (PNM) is a library established under the National Library Act 1972 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
The National Library is responsible for providing a collection of knowled ...
,
Mara Institute of Technology Library,
Sabah State Library
Sabah State Library ( ms, Perpustakaan Negeri Sabah) is a state department under the State Ministry of Education and Innovation Sabah which managing every of the public library branches in Sabah of Malaysia. The headquarters is located in Tasi ...
,
Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia
The National University of Malaysia ( ms, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, abbreviated as UKM) is a public university located in Bandar Baru Bangi, Hulu Langat District, Selangor, Malaysia. Its teaching hospital, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia ...
Library and the
Sabah State Museum
The Sabah Museum ( Malay: ''Muzium Sabah'') is the state museum of Sabah, Malaysia. It is sited on of land at Bukit Istana Lama in Kota Kinabalu, the state capital.
History
The original Sabah Museum location was established on 15 July 1965 ...
Librarian. It is a three-level building with a total area of 3,135.48 square metres. Its objective is to "undertake strategic initiatives to function as a primary information resource center - contributing towards establishing a
knowledge-economic society."
Reception
Foundation trustees and staff are appointed by the
chief minister
A chief minister is an elected or appointed head of government of – in most instances – a sub-national entity, for instance an administrative subdivision or federal constituent entity. Examples include a state (and sometimes a union terri ...
. The foundation likened to
Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
n President
Suharto
Suharto (; ; 8 June 1921 – 27 January 2008) was an Indonesian army officer and politician, who served as the second and the longest serving president of Indonesia. Widely regarded as a military dictator by international observers, Suharto ...
's
administration
Administration may refer to:
Management of organizations
* Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal
** Administrative assistant, Administrative Assistant, traditionally known as a Secretary, or also known as an admini ...
and "heavily criticised for its partisan nature" assuming that it "was a device for imposing mainstream
Malay
Malay may refer to:
Languages
* Malay language or Bahasa Melayu, a major Austronesian language spoken in Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore
** History of the Malay language, the Malay language from the 4th to the 14th century
** Indonesi ...
culture onto
Dayak (and in particular
Iban
IBAN or Iban or Ibán may refer to:
Banking
* International Bank Account Number
Ethnology
* Iban culture
* Iban language
* Iban people
Given name
Cycling
* Iban Iriondo (born 1984)
* Iban Mayo (born 1977)
* Iban Mayoz (born 1981)
Football
* ...
) youth".
One year after the organisation's creation, Sabah Foundation's founder, Tun Mustapha Harun, became chief minister of Sabah.
Environmental issues
In the 1970s, logging increased in its concession area.
Sabah Foundation has a 100-year logging concession.
Conversion of forest areas to land for oil palms is a major threat for rainforests.
Some forest areas are conserved, however.
14
Borneo pygmy elephants were found dead in a concession area of Sabah Foundation within two weeks in 2013, the cause likely being
poisoning
A poison can be any substance that is harmful to the body. It can be swallowed, inhaled, injected or absorbed through the skin. Poisoning is the harmful effect that occurs when too much of that substance has been taken. Poisoning is not to ...
.
Educational initiatives
The Sabah Foundation is involved in a number of educational initiatives in Sabah including the Sabah Foundation Technical College (KTYS) and the
University College Sabah Foundation.
See also
*
Sabah Foundation Tower
*
Wisma Innoprise
Wisma Innoprise, is the state secretariat building for the Sabah state government. This building was built by Innoprise Corporation Sdn. Bhd (ICSB), an investment arm of Yayasan Sabah (Sabah Foundation). This building houses the offices for ICSB ...
* ''
Double Six Tragedy
The Double Six Crash, also known as the Double Six Tragedy, was a crash, involving a GAF N-22B Nomad of Sabah Air, which took place on 6 June 1976 at Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia, killing several local political leaders.
Background
Tun Fuad Stephen ...
'' 1976 plane crash
References
External links
*
Further reading
;Published by the Sabah Foundation
*
*
*
;
Secondary sources for Sabah Foundation
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
Conservation and rainforest rehabilitation projects
*
* {{cite book, author1=Pedro Moura Costa, author2=Stephen Bass, title=Laying the Foundations for Clean Development: Preparing the Land Use Sector : a Quick Guide to the Clean Development Mechanism, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=L_SVgLNT4R8C&q=Sabah+Foundation&pg=PA8, date=1 January 2002, publisher=IIED, isbn=978-1-84369-192-1, page=8
Politics of Sabah
Political and economic research foundations
1966 establishments in Sabah
Political science organizations
Business organisations based in Malaysia
Foundations based in Malaysia
Educational foundations