Jeffrey expects crossovers to STAR
KOTA KINABALU: Sabah STAR president and opposition chief Datuk Dr Jeffrey Kitingan said he is anticipating more people to join his party including leaders from other parties.
“We are always open. I want new leaders to come in. Saya pun mau tua juga (I am getting old too). Saya mau retire juga, mau tanam durian di kabun (I too want to retire and plant durian at the farm),” he said.
Two leaders expected to join Sabah STAR are former Upko leader Datuk Bobbey Suan who won the Nabawan seat and Sook assemblyman Datuk Ellron Angin from Parti Bersatu Rakyat Sabah (PBRS).
“We will have a big function to receive them and their supporters,” he told reporters at the Sabah STAR extraordinary general meeting (EGM) yesterday.
In addition to the two names, there were more joining the party, said Jeffrey.
He then stated that the objective of the EGM was to amend the party’s constitution specifically to expand from 29 supreme council members to 39.
“This is basically to accommodate the changing situation, politically and especially for leaders coming in and their supporters coming in. We need to provide space for them to come in and also the party is growing,” he said.
He added that the party had received inquiries from the Chinese communities from Sandakan, Tawau, Likas and Luyang.
“We are happy to accommodate them. And of course, there are some from Upko, and from Harapan as well as Umno and Warisan,” he said.
Meanwhile, Jeffrey said Gabungan Bersatu Sabah (GBS) was ready to take over from the Warisan-led government if Tan Sri Musa Haji Aman wins the court case as the state’s rightful chief minister today (Nov 7).
He asserted that Musa was still qualified to become Sabah chief minister despite being charged by the Malaysia Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) as he had not been convicted, tried and disqualified.
“We see this merely as a political distraction to destabilise the situation particularly supporters and the YBs to goyang (shake)… so we don’t have to worry about that. After all, he has not been convicted. If he wins tomorrow, he will still be the chief minister. And of course, he will have to handle his case, and that means he will have to plan for transition or whatever to manage the government.
“In a way, this is good because there will be changes. If you are a target, you remove the target to the side and the person who comes up will not be the target anymore so easier for the government to function,” said Jeffrey.
He added that the court case would be heard at 3.30pm and that although the decision cannot be changed, their supporters will be there.
At the same time, Jeffrey also commented on the possibility of a snap election being held.
“There will always be a possibility but it may be small. Why? Because I anticipate strengthening of the situation. Siapa mau susah-susah election kalau cukup tu nombor (who wants an election if the numbers are adequate). So there is a possibility but it is small. But even if that happens, we are ready,” he said.
He added that they had looked at all the possibilities including appeal and the possibility of other things happening and other options.
“Of course, we hope and pray it will be a smooth transition, which is why we met with leaders at the federal level to ensure we have an understanding,” he said.
He also reiterated his earlier stance, saying that in the point of law, the first chief Minister to be sworn in should be the chief minister.
“It has been explained why the second one is not legitimate. My answer is still the same.”
He also said that the present case was different from the Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) case in the 1990s because Musa did not ask for a dissolution.