By Peter Sibon and Lian Cheng
KUCHING, Nov 24: The state governing coalition Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) will be officially launched next year, said protem secretary-general Datuk Alexander Nanta Linggi.
He added that proper discussions will be held among member parties.
Following the approval, GPS will consolidate and move forward as a local coalition representing all races of Sarawak, he continued.
Party whip Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof received the registration certificate from Home Ministry on Thursday (Nov 22).
“We are thankful to all our supporters who have been very loyal and still being with us despite going through a period of anxiety. We also thank Home Affairs Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin for the approval of the registration.
“All along, I have been very confident that our application will be approved because we followed all the regulations and met all the requirements, and subsequently, we got it,” Nanta said when contacted today.
When asked on the possible admission of United People’s Party (UPP) into the fold, the Kapit MP said he would leave it to the discretion of GPS leadership.
“Both Datuk Seri Wong Soon Koh and Datuk Dr Jerip Susil are already part of the Sarawak government and they have been friendly to the government, we will leave it for the GPS leadership to decide,” he continued.
GPS applied for registration with the Registrar of Societies (RoS) in July, following the announcement by Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg to set up the coalition on June 12.
GPS is currently made up of four component parties – Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB), Sarawak United Peoples’ Party (SUPP), Party Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) and Progressive Democratic Party (PDP).
The four parties were part of the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition before Pakatan Harapan took over Putrajaya after GE14 last May.
GPS has 19 MPs, and together with then-Barisan-friendly UPP, the coalition controls 72 out of 82 seats in the Sarawak State Assembly. — DayakDaily
