Bumburing’s claim Gabungan is BN-friendly mischievous – Harapan

KOTA KINABALU: Parti Cinta Sabah (PCS) president Datuk Seri Panglima Wilfred Bumburing’s accusation that Gabungan Sabah is a Barisan Nasional friendly outfit is full of mischief and was designed to attract attention to his struggling minnow’s party which has never gained much relevance since its inception.

This was the opinion of Parti Harapan Rakyat Sabah deputy secretary general Edmund Doudilim.

Harapan Rakyat is a member of Gabungan Sabah.

Doudilim said that like his friend in another local opposition party, Bumburing had also chosen to mock and attack Gabungan Sabah leaders but ironically, he too did not see it fit to attack the Umno-led BN Sabah State Government.

“How could he wrongly accuse others of being BN friendly when he is doing the exact same things?”

“Personally, I had expected Bumburing who rose meteorically and had gained prominence largely from the support of the KDM community and voters in his constituency through PBS and the BN friendly Upko (then PDS) he co-founded with Tan Sri Bernard Dompok and others to now rise above the packs and lead the KDM and fellow Sabahans in ousting all the Malayan parties operating in Sabah.

“Instead, for reasons best known to himself he had decided to join Pakatan Harapan and Warisan thereby perpetuating further the Sabahans’ suffering, especially the KDM,” he claimed.

According to him, Bumburing through the enormous support of the KDM community while he was in PBS and Upko had gained immeasurable exposure and experiences politically whereby he had been a full minister, deputy chief minister and also a member of parliament.

Having been in those high profile positions he should now just concentrate and focus on uniting Sabahans to pursue a noble cause, said Doudilim.

“The noble cause here in Sabah as I see it and which is bigger than anything else is to rid Sabah of the massive and unwarranted interference of Malayan-based parties in Sabah politics. The Malaysian Agreement 1963 (MA63) and the 40 per cent rights to revenue entitlement under the Federal Constitution is already a known cause for all Sabahans and political parties alike for a long, long time now.

“I strongly believe once we rid Sabah of these unnecessary political interventions Sabahans will have a much stronger and solid voice and bargaining power like Sarawak. Too much of Malayan political interference is to me the real culprit and the root cause of many of our problems we are facing today,” he opined.

Hence, Bumburing’s PCS should strive to fight for the rights of the people of Sabah from every angle, in particular the KDMs whose position has been grossly marginalized in every aspect mainly due to unfair policies occasioned by the massive Malayan’s intervention in the running of the State’s administration, he pointed out.

Politically, the divide and rule tactics that were deliberately perpetrated by Kuala Lumpur to split the Sabahans, especially the KDM, should have been foremost in Bumburing’s mind and agenda before he decided to jump into a seemingly ‘fast moving train’ thereby completely abandoning his Sabah for Sabahans slogan, principles and struggles, he alleged.

PCS’s unprecedented move in teaming up with Warisan and Pakatan Harapan (whether he is conscious about it or not) is most certain to perpetuate this dark episode of Sabah for generations to come, claimed Doudilim.

Bumburing through his PCS has every opportunity to create awareness from among the people and the younger generations and to put an end to this thing now. However, and understandably so, he seems to be choosing the easiest way out politically, he pointed out.

“I could see him and his PCS pursuing more for the personal benefits rather than the pursuits of a noble cause itself. I was personally attracted to his brand of leadership and vision for Sabah when his PCS was a member of the leaders in Gabungan Sabah are seriously pursuing,” he said.