Musa loses it, but will fight on

Role up in the air less than 24 hours after swearing-in as Sabah CM

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah Barisan Nasional chairman Tan Sri Musa Aman could be the state’s most shortlived chief minister – he has lost his majority in the assembly less than 24 hours after he was sworn in on Thursday.

Six Barisan assemblymen – four from Umno and two from Upko – have joined ranks with Parti Warisan Sabah and its partners PKR-DAP to have a total of 35 assemblymen in the 60-seat state assembly.

The Upko assemblymen are Datuk Abidin Madingkir (Panginatan) and Datuk Ewon Benedict (Kadamaian) while the four from Umno are Datuk Abdul Muis Picho ( Sebatik), Datuk Hamisah Samad (Tanjong Batu), Datuk Jamawi Jaafar (Kemabong) and Datuk Osman Jamal (Balung).

“I have the numbers, Musa does not have sufficient seats to continue as chief minister. He should resign,” Warisan president Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal said, adding that more have called to join the party.

Speaking to reporters at his Taman Golf View house here after meeting with the Yang di-Pertua Negeri Tun Juhar Mahiruddin at Istana Negeri, Shafie said he had informed Tun Juhar about his party’s majority.

As Shafie pushes for Musa’s resignation, Sabah’s longest serving chief minister of 15 years is digging in his heels for a long political fight.

All signs indicate that he will not resign and was likely to hold on to power as the TYT can only ask him to resign, not force him to quit.

If Musa refuses to go, Shafie’s only option is to wait for the Sabah assembly to convene and seek a vote of no-confidence against Musa.

“There’s no such thing as swearing-in a second Chief Minister. There is no such provision for that under the Sabah constitution,” lawyer Tengku Fuad Ahmad, who works on state rights issues.

Under the Sabah constitution, the state assembly has to meet within 120 days from the April 7 dissolution. Musa thus has until Aug 9 to consolidate his position.

Sabah Barisan leaders who remain loyal to Musa were seen huddled in Seri Gaya, the Chief Minister’s official residence and sources said the Umno, PBS, PBRS and LDP leaders were planning to form a Sabah-based party.

Liberal Democratic Party presi- dent Datuk Seri Teo Chee Kang announced that his party had left Barisan following the decision of Upko president Datuk Seri Wilfred Madius Tangau on Thursday to take his party out of Barisan.

Tangau said apart from the two assemblymen who have joined Shafie, another two Upko assemblymen would also follow the supreme council decision to be with Warisan.

The mood in Seri Gaya was sombre in contrast with the celebratory atmosphere in Shafie’s residence which was crowded with people anticipating Musa’s government to fall.