KUALA LUMPUR: Umno has pledged to defend Sabah and will not allow any party to lay claim on its sovereignty, says party president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
He acknowledged the efforts of the Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said in resolving the Sabah-Sulu dispute and reiterated that Sabah was an independent state.
"Azalina won in The Hague, in France and in Spain in the case of the Sulu group's claims. These successes are very meaningful for the sovereignty of Sabah.
"To our friends from Sabah, please rise. We will defend your land. We will not let other parties claim Sabah, Sabah is a free land."
He said this in his policy speech during the Umno General Assembly, here, today.
Zahid, who is also deputy prime minister, also praised Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani for restructuring the Plantation and Commodities Ministry in facing discrimination from European countries towards the country's palm oil exports.
Johari, the Umno vice-president, Zahid said, had worked to ensure the sustainability of the national palm oil industry.
"This involves the fate and future of our settlers under Felda, Felcra, Risda and other land development authorities across the country. Their fate rests in the hands of Johari," he added.