Willie: BN was my enemy, not GPS

 

Puncak Borneo MP Willie Mongin said he was never enemies with Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS), in an attempt to justify his decision to join Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB).

"Basically, GPS is very new and for the record, I did fight against BN in the past (elections) but I never fought GPS.

"This is something that we must understand," he said, according to Borneo Post.

BN's Sarawak chapter was dissolved on June 12, 2018. The four former component parties went on to form GPS. Their maiden electoral outing was on Dec 18 last year, which saw them winning by a landslide.

Speaking to reporters in Kuching yesterday, Willie (above) said he was grateful that PBB president Abang Johari Openg and the party had accepted him.

In 2018, Willie won the Puncak Borneo seat as a PKR member. He defected to Bersatu in 2020 and sought entry into PBB this year.

Willie claimed that his decision to defect was taken after consulting his supporters and constituents.

"Actually, I did ask my supporters for opinions and as you can see, during the fall of Pakatan Harapan government in 2020, I even went to the extent of posting on Facebook to seek their opinions and (for them) to contact me personally.

"Likewise, I did the same before I submitted my application to join PBB. I hope they would support me. I believe in making collective decisions and I have sought their opinions.

"So, this is not my opinion alone but a part of my constituents' wishes. I'm just fulfilling their wishes like what we had discussed," he said.

Malaysiakini cannot independently verify Willie's claim that he has consulted his constituents.

However, he revealed that there was no guarantee that PBB would field him to defend the Puncak Borneo seat in the next general election.

"We leave it to the wisdom of the premier. We just have to work hard to serve the people and if they believe that we can continue (to serve), then it is up to the party leadership and the premier's wisdom to decide," said Willie. - Mkini