Sabah Bersatu collapses as Hajiji, other leaders quit

 

Hajiji Noor (seated, 5th from right) with other Sabah Bersatu leaders at a gathering held at the Sabah International Convention Center in Kota Kinabalu last night.

PETALING JAYA: Bersatu leaders in Sabah are quitting the Muhyiddin Yassin-led party, says Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) chairman Hajiji Noor.

In a statement, he said the GRS-Barisan Nasional (GRS-BN) state government had also taken into account the advice of the Yang Di-Pertuan Agong on the need for political stability and economic recovery in the unity government led by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.

Hajiji said the “unanimous decision” by Sabah Bersatu leaders to leave the party is based on the premise that the status quo is “no longer tenable”.

While GRS had pledged its support for Anwar’s unity government, at the federal level, Bersatu was in the opposition.

“This unanimous decision is in the interest of Sabah, for the sake of unity and to fulfil the rakyat’s wish and aspiration for us to fight and continue our struggle under the auspices of a local party,” he said.

“With this decision, we will now use GRS to voice out Sabah’s interests and that of the Bornean states in Malaysia. We are confident that this decision will be good for political unity and stability in Sabah.”

The defections will not trigger the anti-hopping law as Sabah Bersatu leaders contested the general election (GE15) under the GRS banner.

Only Bersatu vice-president Ronald Kiandee, who won the Beluran seat, contested GE15 under Perikatan Nasional (PN).

Moving forward, Hajiji said GRS will form a new local party.

“In the meantime, we will collectively be members of GRS,” he said.

“We pledge our full support to the unity government and we are confident of Anwar’s leadership and wisdom to lead the country.”

He also thanked PN chairman and Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin for his leadership during their tenure as Bersatu members. - FMT