KOTA KINABALU – A meeting of Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) leaders was held last night to discuss its stance amid the political turmoil at the federal level.
A source told The Vibes that the meet was called by Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Mohd Noor at his official residence, the Yayasan Sabah House, in Likas here about 8pm.
Five cars believed to be ferrying state ministers were spotted in the house compound, with the talks appearing to end after just an hour, he said.
“There were about five state ministers who attended the meeting tonight. Among them were Datuk Seri Jeffrey Kitingan, who is Sabah Star president, and Datuk Ellron Angin from the same party.
“The other three ministers are not known. But, I was told that Hajiji will see all his ministers in stages.”
The insider said Hajiji, who is also Sulaman assemblyman, will call a meeting with all GRS reps soon.
It is learnt that one of the outcomes of yesterday’s meet is that the ministers agreed the state ruling coalition remains intact, unlike the situation facing the federal Perikatan Nasional (PN) administration.
GRS comprises Sabah Bersatu, Sabah Star, PAS and Sabah Progressive Party from PN; Barisan Nasional’s (BN) Umno, MCA, MIC and Parti Bersatu Rakyat; and, Parti Bersatu Sabah.
Hajiji is chairman of both Sabah PN and GRS, while Jeffrey is a PN vice-president at the federal level.
The source said Putrajaya’s current situation does not look good, reiterating that a meeting of all PN party leaders has been called at Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin’s residence today.
“The invitation was sent out by Datuk Marzuki Mohamad, the prime minister’s principal private secretary.
“It is not a regular meeting, but an irregular one related to the status of the PN government.”
As of last night, he said, PN has the support of only 109 MPs.
Last week, Hajiji said GRS was intact mere hours before Umno announced its withdrawal of support for PN, leaving many to believe that Sabah Bersatu had pre-empted a move ahead of the BN lynchpin’s decision. – The Vibes, August 11, 2021