Parti Warisan Sabah may only be a year old, but some are of the opinion that the party has the potential to cause an upset to Barisan Nasional in the forthcoming general election.
The arrests of Warisan leaders, including that of party president Mohd Shafie Apdal, have only served to strengthen this thinking.
Warisan vice-president Junz Wong sees the crackdown as proof that the fledgling party is seen as a threat to BN.
While some fear that the spate of arrests will cripple Warisan, its supporters believe that the party is stronger as a result, while others say the “injustice” will lead to more sympathy for the party.
Met in Kota Kinabalu, Kinabatangan native and Umno member Awang Asgali said even he could not help but admit that Warisan is currently the “strongest” opposition party in the state.
“Just look at the crowd during the remand hearings, it’s not even voting time. I think Warisan is indeed strong,” Awang said in reference to the hundreds of supporters who turned up to court in support of the detained Warisan leaders.
During Shafie’s first remand hearing last week, reports said up to 500 supporters had gathered in a show of solidarity with the Warisan president.
While awed by the support for Warisan, Awang (photo) still expressed scepticism over the party’s chances in the coming election.
“We cannot know for sure because people change. Five years ago, when the opposition came, everyone joined them, but when the time came to vote, they chose Barisan (Nasional).”
But Warisan, said the 45-year-old, has the “Shafie factor”, which sets it apart from other opposition parties in the state.
“When Shafie left Umno, all his supporters followed, and these people went to villages stating that they want Sabah to develop further.
“Shafie always went to the ground during his time in Umno and contributed a lot. This is why the rakyat love him, not because of his party membership but because of his contributions,” Awang claimed.
Local voter Aman Mohd Zain (photo) believes that Warisan has solid prospects under Shafie’s leadership.
“Their supporters are really strong. The rakyat have sort of given them a good mandate. I don’t think the other parties have such a bright chance like them.
“For Warisan, it’s all about tackling the rakyat’s woes, unlike other parties that have other issues to fight for, like secession.”
Rising through the ranks in Umno as a youth leader in the early 1990s, Shafie became the first Sabahan to become vice-president of the party in the 2013 Umno election.
However, he was removed in a cabinet reshuffle two years later, and had his membership in Umno suspended after becoming increasingly critical of Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak’s leadership.
After quitting Umno, Shafie – together with former PKR vice-president Darell Leiking, former DAP leader Junz Wong and a host of local personalities – formed Warisan. The party’s registration was approved by the Registrar of Societies in October last year.
Shafie is currently under remand by MACC. The commission is probing some 60 companies that were awarded projects for supply of water, electricity and roads to help people in rural Sabah.
The former rural and regional minister denies involvement in the scandal.
Despite critics trying to prove Shafie’s guilt in the matter, support for him remains steadfast.
Awang Mohd Yahya Awang Omar (on right in photo), a familiar face at Warisan events, was among those who waited for Shafie’s return to Sabah earlier this month.
His decision to support Warisan was because he believes change is needed in Sabah.
This sentiment was echoed by party member Mary Chong, 52, who joined the party upon its inception.
“Everyone wants to join Warisan because we all want change. I think Warisan will administer the state better than Umno,” she said.
Describing her time in Umno, Chong said it was the norm for “cronies to get assistance”.
“They don’t help people like us, they leave us to our own devices and the lives of poor people like us became worse.”
But though some may be of the opinion that Warisan can be the saviour of Sabah, not everyone is convinced.
Samin Salim, 60 (photo), is one individual who believes that BN will still retain the state in the next general election.
The retiree from Kota Belud pointed out how green Warisan is, and the opposition’s general lack of cohesiveness in the state.
“Warisan can probably win three or four seats, but it cannot lead the state as it is still new and the people have yet to see what the party can actually offer.”
Younger voters may be attracted to the party, admitted Samin, but the same may not apply come voting day.
“From 100 people, I think only 30 will vote for them,” he added.
Samin also quashed Shafie’s rhetoric about bringing development to Sabah, saying the Warisan president had ample time to enact changes in the state during his time in the federal cabinet.
“Why didn’t he fulfil his promises then? The tongue is boneless, therefore they can promise anything.
“But I’m confident that Sabahans are still with BN because they have witnessed various developments under them. I can guarantee that BN will still lead the state.”
Tenom native Yusof Udin (photo), on the other hand, said that it was especially hard to comment on Warisan’s chances, given the relative inexperience of the party.
“It’s hard to comment as we have yet to see how they will administer the state,” Yusof said, adding that that was a risk he was not willing to take.
“I don’t think I dare to give them a chance because they are still so new.”
Young business owner Lim Ket Siong is also undecided on who he would support in the election. “There has yet to be a party that attracts me,” said the 23-year-old.
Like the others, Lim’s concern hinges on the fact that Warisan’s track record is yet to be seen.
Despite these concerns, party vice-president Wong claimed that Warisan has since attracted 100,000 more supporters.
‘We stay calm and focused’
Nevertheless, he admits that “regressive actions” as well as attempts to discredit the party – such as the crackdown on the Warisan leaders – have been challenging.
“But we stay calm and focused. We overcome it stage by stage, we are determined and we will overcome,” Wong said confidently.
Another challenge the party may face is the perceived “fickle mindedness” of Sabahans, who are said to be prone to change their stances overnight.
“Well, if there is one party that should be worried about this, it is not Warisan,” said Wong (photo).
“It is the BN that should be worried. The results of 12 state seats in the last election have shown that the Kadazandusun Murut are not with the government.
“And many make the mistake of believing that all in the Muslim community think alike, but the Muslim community here has always been represented by the United Sabah National Organisation (Usno).
“Usno Youth leaders then had no choice but to follow (and join Umno). But now, Muslim voters along the Sabah East Coast will stick with Shafie,” the Warisan vice-president added.
Usno came into power after the 1967 Sabah state election and held on to the state for nine years before being defeated by the Sabah People’s United Front (Berjaya).
While it continued to participate in state elections, Usno never regained enough support to form the government, and even faced deregistration in 1996.
Among those who had no choice but to make the exodus to Umno was Shafie, an Usno Youth leader at the time. Shafie was later credited as one of the founders of Umno in Sabah.
Sabah currently has 60 state seats, and pending parliamentary approval, the state will have 73 seats following the constituency redelineation process. Of the current 60 seats, 35 are Muslim-majority, while 18 are predominantly Kadazandusun.
Wong is also not particularly concerned about three-cornered fights involving Warisan, other opposition parties and BN.
“Warisan is strong enough (and) Sabahans know how to choose. Choose (Parti Solidariti Tanah Airku president) Jeffrey (Kitingan), he only has one seat, (Parti Harapan Rakyat Sabah president) Lajim (Ukin), also one seat. They cannot form a government.
“And DAP only has four (parliamentary and state) seats. I want to remind the DAP to be pragmatic; with seats they failed to win in the last general election, they should give other people the chance to win,” the Likas assemblyperson told his former party.
Shafie has always insisted that Warisan will never join Pakatan Harapan, as the party’s struggle is about fighting for the rights of Sabahans.
However, Warisan is not entirely opposed to working together with other opposition parties in the state to ensure that BN is ousted.
Wong said discussions could be held if other parties were willing to collaborate.
MKINI
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