KOTA KINABALU, Oct 7 — Umno Sabah has corrected the statement made by Chief Minister Datuk Seri Panglima Hajiji Noor yesterday which claimed that only Umno Sabah chief Datuk Seri Panglima Bung Moktar withdrew support for his government, the Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS).

According to Umno Sabah’s Information Chief Datuk Suhaimi Nasir, Hajiji’s statement, which he made as chairman of GRS, is misleading and could create a negative perception, especially among Umno members in the state, suggesting that the withdrawal of support was an individual decision.

Referring to the decision made at the Umno liaison committee meeting in January 2023, chaired by Bung and attended by several elected representatives (Umno), including ministers and assistant ministers, as well as Umno division chiefs, Suhaimi stated that the decision to withdraw support from Hajiji’s leadership as Chief Minister and GRS chairman was made by consensus, not individually.

"Today, Umno Sabah is clarifying Hajiji’s statement that only Bung withdrew support from the GRS government; in fact, the decision was made unanimously by the Umno Sabah’s leadership,” he explained in a statement yesterday.

Hajiji, in his media statement yesterday, asserted that only a handful of leaders in Umno Sabah withdrew support for the GRS government.

"Now we can see that in Sabah, it is unique; the one who withdrew support from the government is Umno”s Bung Moktar (Umno Sabah chief, Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin),” he said.

According to Suhaimi, who is also the Umno Libaran division chief, Hajiji’s statement is not based on facts but is misleading and can generate negative sentiments among Umno Sabah members.

He acknowledged that there are indeed Umno leaders still in the GRS State Cabinet; however, they only hold the position of assistant ministers and are placed in less significant ministries with limited powers, promised funding that remains unfulfilled.

Suhaimi stated that regarding the ministerial positions claimed by Hajiji, they do not represent Umno since the minister’s membership has been suspended and does not represent Umno Sabah.

"We admit that there are still Umno/BN representatives in the Sabah State Cabinet, but this is merely a facade to cover weaknesses and past mistakes, especially since GRS under Hajiji’s leadership supported Perikatan Nasional (PN) after the 15th General Election without consulting the members of the GRS coalition,” he said.

However, Suhaimi, who is also an appointed assemblyman, noted that after PN, led by Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, failed to form a government, GRS under Hajiji made a 360-degree turn to support PH in forming a unity government.

"This is the real picture of a party and government that lacks principles and stance, reflecting chaos within GRS, where its right-wing leaders hold significant positions with PN (two-sided) while simultaneously boasting about supporting the Unity Government,” he said.

Suhaimi added that GRS’s current theatrics are merely to deceive all parties, including the Prime Minister, as a symbol of support for PH, while simultaneously, GRS leaders express sentiments like ‘this is our house, we take care of it’, and ‘reject Malayan parties’, which certainly is not directed solely at Umno, as the PH coalition also includes the Keadilan Party, DAP, and PAS, parties based in Peninsular Malaysia.

"The reality is that GRS leaders prefer to play politics to maintain their positions and interests rather than safeguarding the interests of the people of Sabah; that is why they have failed to uphold the ‘Sabah Maju Jaya’ initiative,” he said. — The Borneo Post