Warisan’s own decision to expand
Parti Warisan Sabah ‘s decision to expand to the peninsula was made entirely on its own and not influenced by Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad or any other individual.
KOTA KINABALU: Parti Warisan Sabah secretary general Datuk Loretto Padua Jr. yesterday stressed that the party’s decision to expand to the peninsula was made entirely on its own.
He said the decision to expand the party to Semenanjung was made by the party alone and it was certainly not influenced by Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad or any other individual.
“The concept of ‘unity’ and ‘building a nation and not a particular race or religion’ which forms the foundation of Warisan has also captured the imagination of many Malaysians, especially those who are tired of the racial and religious polemics.
“Hence, Malaysians who believe in dignified politics, credibility, tolerance and co-existence can view Warisan as an alternative political party that is congruent with these ideals.
“If political parties such as Umno, Bersatu, PAS, PKR or DAP can become national political parties and expand to Sabah, then why can’t Warisan do the same thing and offer its ideals and concepts to all Malaysians in the peninsula?” said Loretto in a statement yesterday.
He said there should be no problem for Malaysians in the peninsula to accept and support Warisan because the party advocates unity in a multi-racial society for which Sabah is a good example.
“As a party that is modelled on Sabah’s multi-racial tolerance and harmony, Warisan is a very effective agent to promote these ideals in the country. We built this nation together.
“It doesn’t make sense at all to restrict Warisan within the confines of being a State-level party.
This totally contradicts with the spirit of Sabah as an equal partner within the Federation of Malaysia as agreed upon by this country’s founding fathers in which Sabah also has a role in determining the direction of the country,” he concluded.
Warisan president Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal on Saturday announced the decision of the party to extend its wings to the peninsula.
This was unanimously agreed to by the party’s supreme council members during their annual general meeting.