Using the Sulu Sultanate heir’s success in their claims against the Malaysian government on Sabah, a Filipino senator has raised the sceptre of the Philippine’s claims on the Borneo Island state, saying the implication of the arbitration ruling is clear, and that 750,000 Filipinos in Sabah have no health benefits and are stateless.
Malaysia took over the oil-rich state from Britain after independence and annually paid a token sum to the heirs which stopped in 2013 after the Lahad Datu standoff.
With this in mind, he urged his country to “seize the opportunity” and to stake the country’s claim on Sabah. Francis Tolentino also says the Philippines “owns” the oil-rich state on the northern tip of Borneo.
