GRS stronger now as a fully-local party, says analyst

 

Hajiji Noor announced on Dec 10 that he and other leaders of Sabah Bersatu had decided to leave the party en masse. (Bernama pic)

KOTA KINABALU: Gabungan Rakyat Sabah, the leading partner in the ruling state coalition, is in a stronger position following the exit of Sabah Bersatu leaders from their former party as GRS can now claim to be a fully-local Sabah party, according to political analyst Lee Kuok Tiung.

He said the decision by state assemblymen and MPs of Sabah Bersatu to leave the party was a shrewd move as no one could now accuse GRS of being a Bersatu-led party masquerading as a local Sabah party.

“It is now a local party and not only that, I believe it would help strengthen the Borneo Bloc with its collaboration with the Gabungan Parti Sarawak,” he said.

Lee also dismissed the speculation that Hajiji Noor’s government would collapse for supposedly having lost his majority in the state assembly. Instead, he said, Hajiji’s position had been further fortified because he and other Bersatu members had become GRS members.

Lee also dismissed speculation about state opposition party Warisan taking over the Sabah government. “How is this going to happen? Where will they get 21 other assemblymen to support them?” he said.

Hajiji has formed a coalition government with GRS and Barisan Nasional, which together command 46 seats in the 79-member state assembly. The coalition has the support of 14 other assembly members from Pakatan Harapan and other parties.

The opposition comprises Warisan, which has 19 seats.

Political analyst Tony Paridi Bagang said the decision by Sabah PH to support Hajiji should be enough to drown any attempt to topple the government. “Their support would ensure that political stability remains intact until 2025 when the state government’s term ends,” he said.

Speculation about a move by Warisan to replace the GRS-BN government had arisen following the departure of Hajiji and other leaders from Sabah Bersatu.

Earlier this week, a local whistleblower portal said at least four BN assemblymen have signed declarations of support for Warisan president Shafie Apdal to become Sabah chief minister.

He said any attempt by Warisan to take over “may not sit well with the people who are already getting sick and tired of politics”.

“The big question is, can Warisan really secure support from other assembly members, since the current state government is already aligned with the federal government? They have little to offer,” he said.

GRS was among several parties which signed an agreement on Saturday to support the federal government led by Anwar Ibrahim. - FMT