FIVE incumbent Sabah state assemblymen from Parti Solidariti Tanah Airku (STAR) have announced that they will remain with Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS), distancing themselves from party president Datuk Seri Dr Jeffrey Kitingan's decision to leave the ruling coalition ahead of the 17th Sabah state election (PRN17).
Deputy STAR president Datuk Ellron Angin confirmed the stance today, speaking after the official announcement of the dissolution of the Sabah State Legislative Assembly at Menara Kinabalu.
“President Datuk Seri Dr Jeffrey Kitingan should be aware of this. The five of us will be issuing a joint statement soon,” Ellron said, referring to himself and four other STAR assemblymen: Datuk Annuar Ayub Aman (Liawan), Datuk Robert Tawik (Bingkor), Datuk Flovia Ng (Tulid), and Datuk Abidin Madingkir (Paginatan).
The development comes as Jeffrey, who is also the MP for Keningau, was reportedly in Kuala Lumpur today attending the Dewan Rakyat session. His recent decision to contest PRN17 using STAR’s own logo effectively ended the party’s formal membership in GRS.
Sources indicate that the five state representatives will now apply to become direct members of GRS and contest under the coalition's banner should they be selected as candidates.
Meanwhile, acting president of Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS), Datuk Seri Dr Joachim Gunsalam, said that PBS’s cooperation agreement with STAR, signed through a memorandum of understanding, remains intact despite recent developments.
“As far as I’m concerned, the agreement with STAR still stands. We are not breaking it. However, we will need to carry out some coordination and observe how things unfold,” said Dr Joachim.
He added that PBS and STAR could still discuss seat allocations to avoid contesting against one another during the election. However, Dr Joachim also confirmed that he has not yet spoken with Jeffrey following the latter’s decision to exit GRS and contest independently.
“What worries us is the risk of splitting the votes of the Bumiputera communities, especially among the Kadazandusun Murut (KDM),” he said. “Yes, we are concerned about that because STAR has been our partner, but as of now, only the STAR president has left GRS — the other five remain with us. There is still hope.” - October 6, 2025
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