By Peter Sibon
KUCHING, Sept 27: Sabah’s Chief Minister must be a person who commands the most number of seats in the Sabah State Legislative Assembly, asserts PRS president Tan Sri Dr James Jemut Masing.
“The issue is simple. Whoever has the command of the majority of elected representatives, becomes the chief minister.
“Warisan (Parti Warisan Sabah) should play by the rules, be a gentleman and admit defeat graciously. Don’t wait for Sabah elected reprehensive to jump into Warisan to form the government again. It’s an embarrassment to a democratic system which we have sworn to abide by,” Masing oined in a statement today.
He was commenting on the delayed appointment of the new Chief Minister of Sabah even after Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS), which comprises Perikatan Nasional (PN), Barisan Nasional (BN) and Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) have won the just concluded Sabah State election with 38 out of 73 seats up for grabs.
The delayed appointment of the new Chief Minister could give time for Warisan president Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal to consolidate his position with more seats from other parties from outside his Warisan-Plus coalition.
“Warisan’s refusal to concede defeat doesn’t hold water. Warisan stands, whether it’s the single biggest party to win the elected rep (sic), is not the issue.
“The coalition of PN, BN and PBS has the majority in the House. Therefore, whoever they nominate becomes the CM of Sabah,” Masing emphasised.
Masing who is also the Deputy Chief Minister hoped that politicians from the losing camp will not start crossing over to Warisan-Plus, similar to what happened in the last Sabah state election when then Sabah BN’s chief Tan Sri Musa Aman was appointed as chief minister only to be dethroned by Shafie after two days in office.
“Please don’t be too adventurist and start wandering and hoping all over the ‘ponds’. The people of Sabah’s welfare is of paramount importance especially during Covid-19 pandemic than personal interest.
“Whatever disappointments they may have, they better keep those to themselves and bide their time till the next state election in five years’ time,” Masing opined.
The Minister of Infrastructure and Port Development asserted that the result of the Sabah state election was a good lesson for Sarawakians that Malaysia as a nation is here to stay.
“That, we must keep at all cost by all Malaysians. As Sarawakians, we must, however, demand what is rightfully ours as enshrined in Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) and in the Federal Constitution. Nothing more and nothing less.
“As PRS (Parti Rakyat Sarawak) president, I would like to offer my heartiest congratulations to GRS for their convincing victory in the recent Sabah state election.
“Now that the people of Sabah have spoken, it’s my hope that the elected representatives of Sabah will discharge their responsibilities in ways they have promised during their campaign,” added Masing. — DayakDaily
