KOTA KINABALU – Sabah Umno has expressed some reservation over the call to officially register the Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) alliance that it is part of.
State party chief Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin today said he has not been able to “catch up” with some of the views expressed by fellow Umno leader Datuk Seri Salleh Said Keruak, but will look into his suggestions.
“Maybe the call is the personal view of Salleh. In Umno, we will look into the pros and cons before making a decision over this matter,” he told reporters here when asked to comment on it at the Likas Sports Complex today.
Usukan state assemblyman Salleh, who is a former chief minister, recently posted on Facebook that it is best for the alliance to be officially registered in bid to strengthen its footing in Sabah.
GRS comprises Barisan Nasional (BN) and Perikatan Nasional (PN) coalitions plus Parti Bersatu Sabah. Umno is the leading party within BN.
However, a split between BN and PN at the national level saw both contesting against each other in the recently concluded Melaka polls, with BN emerging the clear winner.
Salleh raised the possibility that this same scenario could take place in Sabah in the 15th general election (GE15) and therefore proposed that GRS be registered as a single entity.
Several leaders within GRS have already expressed support for the suggestion, but observers believe that Sabah Umno leadership may not agree to it.
This could possibly see Sabah Umno going solo during GE15 in the state, despite having autonomy to set its own direction and signing a cooperative pact with other GRS parties earlier this year.
Bung has consistently said that Sabah Umno has been given autonomy from Umno at the federal level and will be able to chart its own political direction. – The Vibes, November 27, 2021.
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