KOTA KINABALU – Warisan is keeping its options open for a political partnership, signalling a shift from its opposition leanings after its foray into the Johor elections.
Warisan had previously called for a leadership transition in Pakatan Harapan (PH). Now Warisan president Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal said he was willing to work with any political group.
This, of course, he said, should be for the sake of political stability and in the interest of the people.
Shafie was not dismissive when asked whether the party was willing to work with Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) or Barisan Nasional (BN) in the forthcoming polls – moving away from a former ally, PH, which Warisan was friendly to.
He noted that all the current alliances are also vulnerable due to weak relationships between parties – for instance, the fighting between Bersatu and Umno in the ruling political alliance.
“We are not going to close our chapter to anybody; we are not going to say no or completely reject any party as of now.
“We are going to study which party we will need to have a smart partnership with. We are aware and do realise that it is not easy to work alone.
“We are looking into every aspect and every possibility, (one of it) we will be looking into becoming like Sarawak in which they (Gabungan Parti Sarawak) are not affiliated to any member or party, but are working closely with the government of the day at the federal level,” he told reporters after Warisan’s supreme council meeting here today.
Shafie said that before going into a smart partnership, Warisan will focus on strengthening the party at the state and national levels.
It could not be ascertained as to why there was a sudden change in Warisan’s direction, but the party’s ties seem to be going through a rough patch ever since the previous parliamentary sitting, where its MPs had proposed a leadership transition in the opposition.
Despite supporting PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim for prime minister, the Semporna MP had nevertheless been critical of the abysmal performance of PH in the Johor, Melaka, and Sarawak elections.
Shafie said he believed it is time for Warisan to re-strategise and be more flexible on its political leanings in view of the forthcoming 15th general election, which he believed may be called this year or the latest by early 2023.
Shafie also said that Warisan will not look into destabilising the state government, indicating that such issues are a matter of the law.
In Sabah, Warisan is the party with the most assemblymen and striking a partnership with Umno and GRS could see a political shift in the state. The party currently has 18 assemblymen.
On another matter, Shafie said Warisan has been firm that the duration of the Sabah assembly sittings should be longer than the current practice of about four days.
“How is it that Parliament with 222 seats could sit for three months, and Sabah with 73 state seats could only sit for four days? Each assemblyman is given only five minutes to speak.
“Sabah has a lot of issues, there are also certain provisions of the law that need to be improved; give us the space. The legislative assembly is where we enact the law, it is very important that we are given more time,” he said.
Meanwhile, Shafie said that former Warisan vice-president Datuk Peter Anthony’s position in the party will remain vacant until the next party election.
“We have regulations to follow and we cannot simply fill in a vacant seat because he (Anthony) was elected into his position, not appointed,” he said. – The Vibes, March 19, 2022
