Sabah Umno has not lost plot — Bung
KOTA KINABALU: Sabah Umno has not lost the political game despite taking a step back, says its chief, Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin.
“Taking a step back does not mean we lose, God willing, Sabah Umno will rise forever,” he said in a Facebook post, after party president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi asked for a cooling off period to mend strained ties with the Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) government.
“Sabah Umno has been tested with various challenges and conjectures and we have gone through the bittersweet struggles,” he said, adding that the party was always defending and protecting the rights of the people in the state.
After a special meeting with Sabah Umno on Monday, Ahmad Zahid had asked for a “cooling off period” for him to talk to Chief Minister and GRS chairman Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor to find an amicable solution to the crisis triggered with Bung’s decision to withdraw Sabah Barisan Nasional’s support for the GRS government on Jan 6.
Ahmad Zahid, who is also Deputy Prime Minister, told reporters on Monday that he had asked for the cooling off period and would be taking personal initiative to resolve the issue.
“During this period, we take the view that no issue cannot be resolved. There are methods we will plan for, but we understand that to achieve this, there must be two-way understanding between Barisan and Umno with other political partners.
“We will give priority to this approach,” Ahmad Zahid said in urging all parties to stop making further statements to aggravate the situation.
Sabah was hit by a political crisis when Barisan-Umno assemblymen severed ties with GRS claiming that Hajiji was party-less after he and top leaders of Sabah Bersatu quit to become direct members of GRS.
Sabah Umno said that Hajiji was in contravention of the Sabah constitution which requires the Chief Minister to be a leader of a political party as GRS, which he led, was a coalition and not a political party.
Hajiji managed to secure a 44seat majority in the 79-member state assembly, enabling him to remain as Chief Minister.
On Sunday, Hajiji disclosed that he will be leading localbased Parti Gagasan Rakyat Sabah (Gagasan Rakyat) as the political vehicle for ex-Bersatu members who left the national party on Dec 8.
He said that Gagasan Rakyat has already been admitted to GRS.