THE United Progressive Kinabalu Organisation (UPKO) has proposed to the Pakatan Harapan (PH) Presidential Council that it be allowed to contest under its own logo in the upcoming 17th Sabah State Election (PRN17), in what is seen as a move to assert a more localised political identity.
President of UPKO, Datuk Ewon Benedick, said the suggestion reflects a desire to highlight Sabah’s unique political spirit within the PH coalition, but stressed that the proposal remains under discussion.
“We want PH to project the Sabah spirit, which is why UPKO has made the proposal to use our own logo,” he said. “I believe our colleagues in PH understand the sentiment behind this. For now, let the discussions run their course. Once a decision is made, we will announce it.”
Ewon, who also serves as Minister of Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives, made the remarks following the opening of the Halal Franchise Conference today. He confirmed he would defend his Kadamaian state seat in the upcoming election.
Pakatan Harapan, which comprises UPKO, PKR, DAP and Amanah, is currently negotiating seat allocations with Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS), the ruling coalition led by Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor. Hajiji revealed that only half of the seat allocations have been finalised thus far.
“We have been in discussions with PH, including with Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail recently, and we have finalised around half the seats,” Hajiji told reporters, but declined to specify how many seats had been agreed or how many PH had requested.
“Every political coalition wants more seats, but we must be practical. We should contest in areas where we have the highest chances of winning,” he added.
The Sabah State Legislative Assembly was dissolved on 6 October, triggering the need for PRN17. Of the 79 seats in the assembly, 73 are contested while six are appointed.
Meanwhile, GRS has expressed willingness to field two suspended UMNO lawmakers — Datuk Shahelmey Yahya and Datuk Andi Muhammad Suryady Bandy — as candidates under its banner, pending internal discussions.
“They have expressed interest in contesting under GRS, and I have no objections,” said Hajiji. “They are leaders — one is a minister, the other a deputy minister.”
Shahelmey, Deputy Chief Minister and MP for Putatan, holds the Tanjung Keramat state seat. Andi Muhammad Suryady, MP for Kalabakan, is the incumbent for Tanjung Batu and currently serves as interim Assistant Minister of Industrial Development and Entrepreneurship.
Both men were suspended from UMNO for six years in early 2023 for defying the party’s decision to withdraw support from Hajiji’s GRS government — an episode that led to the so-called 'Kinabalu Move' political crisis in January last year.
However, should they run under GRS in the state election, they would likely have to vacate their parliamentary seats, which they won on a Barisan Nasional (BN) ticket during the 15th General Election (GE15).
On a related note, Hajiji reiterated his commitment to youth representation, promising that GRS would nominate as many young candidates as possible, reflecting their demographic weight — around half of Sabah’s 1.7 million registered voters.
“God willing, we will do so. But there’s still time before we finalise the candidate list,” he said. - October12, 2025
