PENAMPANG, Oct 9 — Any calls for cooperation between Parti Solidariti Tanah Airku (Star), Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS), and Parti Warisan (Warisan) is only a provocation for now to disrupt the alliances in place, said Star president Datuk Seri Jeffrey Kitingan.

Kitingan, who is also the deputy chairman of Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) coalition said that while political partnerships are unpredictable, the current rumour linking Star and PBS with Warisan was just an attempt to weaken the coalition.

"In politics, we cannot dismiss the possibility of anything. It can happen any time, even at the last minute,” he said to reporters after the opening of the new Star office for the Moyog Division here.

"But I hope it won’t happen, because what we are seeing now is provocation, propaganda, and a plan to weaken our unity within GRS, so it’s no surprise,” he said.

There was a call on social media by a PBS leader for the three parties to work together in the upcoming state elections. It started as a Facebook post by Petagas division chief Azmi Ahmad, but PBS has since distanced itself from the post, claiming it was his own personal opinion.

Star and PBS, the two parties whose members are mostly non-Muslim natives, are currently coalition partners within GRS, and have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen political cooperation ahead of Sabah’s 17th state election (PRN17).

Meanwhile, when asked about plans to obtain additional seats for Star in the upcoming Sabah state election, Kitingan said it was still at the discussion stage within the party and also with PBS.

"We do have plans, but we need to discuss it within the party forum to make a decision. So, at this moment, I cannot disclose it,” he said.

"But nothing has been finalised yet. We are still exploring various options, possibilities, and which areas we can win.

"It’s pointless to claim a seat if there’s no chance of winning. So, our plan is to identify winnable areas to make our claim,” he said.

Kitingan also said that the party would be using the GRS logo to contest in the upcoming PRN17.

"I’ve always believed that when we use a certain logo, we must have confidence in it. I can say now that I am 100 per cent confident,” he said.