No Sabah BN ‘poster boy’ to avoid internal conflict, says analyst

 

Sabah BN chairman Bung Moktar Radin said all its potential candidates are qualified to be the chief minister. (Facebook pic)

PETALING JAYA: 

Barisan Nasional is not naming a “poster boy” head of the Sabah state election to avoid any internal conflict, says an analyst.

Bilcher Bala of Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) said all the candidates will feel “equally appreciated” at the same time.

Bilcher said the move showed BN’s more pragmatic and inclusive strategy to face its challengers in the election, which must be held by December.

Bilcher Bala.

“By not naming a ‘poster boy’, BN is focusing on the collective strength of its candidates.

“This is to avoid internal division and ensure that all the candidates feel valued and given equal opportunities,” he told FMT.

He said team spirit may be affected if one candidate was given priority.

On Friday, Sabah BN chairman Bung Moktar Radin said the coalition was not focused on who will be appointed as its “poster boy” for the polls as all its potential candidates were qualified to be the chief minister.

He told FMT that Sabah BN was focused on winning as many seats as possible to ensure that it could lead the state administration in cooperation with other parties.

“What’s important is that Umno-BN must win many seats, and I want to make sure that our candidates can achieve this,” he said.

Lau Zhe Wei.

Lau Zhe Wei of the International Islamic University (IIUM) agreed that BN needed to focus on winning seats rather than naming a “poster boy”.

Lau said BN needed to win half of the state seats first.

“Sabah politics is quite ‘chaotic’ and unstable at the moment. If you win half of the seats, it’s easy to nominate a (‘poster boy’), and if you don’t get half, BN has to collaborate with a third party, which means the chief ministerial candidate has to be discussed after that.

“What Bung said is right, there’s no need to think of the long-term (for now). Instead, you have to win first,” he said. - FMT