Sabah, Sarawak must be part of PH-led unity govt, says Kitingan

 

STAR president Jeffrey Kitingan says his party is on board with the King’s proposal to have a unity government to resolve the political impasse.

KOTA KINABALU: Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) deputy chairman Jeffrey Kitingan has come out in support of a unity government led by Pakatan Harapan (PH).

The president of Parti Solidariti Tanah Airku (STAR), a component of GRS, said his party was on board with the King’s proposal to have a unity government to resolve the political impasse.

“A unity government is the best solution I can see right now. However, this government must include the elected governments of Sabah and Sarawak for it to be effective and truly inclusive.

“The unity government mechanism must be clearly established for it to work,” the Sabah deputy chief minister told FMT.

Kitingan said GRS and Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) had 29 seats together, while two independent MPs and one from Parti Kesejahteraan Demokratik Masyarakat (KDM) have agreed to work together as one entity.

He said that since the “Borneo bloc” had 32 seats, it could provide the country with some much-needed stability.

“The peninsula leaders and political parties are making a mess of Malaysia. It is time for the Borneo states to lead the nation and provide stability,” he said.

On Monday, GRS chairman Hajiji Noor reiterated that the Sabah coalition was supporting Muhyiddin Yassin, the PN chairman, to become the next prime minister.

Meanwhile, despite initially stating its support for Muhyiddin, GPS seemed to have changed its stand after Barisan Nasional said it would remain in the opposition, with the Sarawak coalition saying it would let the King decide what was best for the people.

A source told FMT yesterday that GRS and GPS have agreed to work as a bloc in deciding who to form the government with, and GRS to follow their Sarawakian counterpart’s decision.

It is understood that GRS’ decision to work as a bloc with GPS had ruffled feathers in PN.

STAR is a part of PN, but contested on a GRS ticket in the general election, along with Sabah Bersatu and the Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP).

The other member of GRS that contested in the polls was Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS).

Kitingan said GRS will hold a meeting soon to discuss the matter if the political impasse remained unresolved by the end of this week.

“Right now, we are focused on state matters as we will be tabling the budget tomorrow,” he said. - FMT