KUCHING, Nov 23 — Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) will abide by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong’s wish to form a unity government if that is the royal decree, said Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) president Datuk Joseph Salang Gandum.
Responding to claims that PRS’ five MPs have withdrawn their support for Perikatan Nasional’s chief Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin as prime minister, Salang asserted that the coalition will heed the King’s wishes.
“PRS MPs are together with GPS and GPS as a group is taking heed of the King’s desire for a unity govt. If a unity government is what the King wants, I think we should follow that,” he said when contacted.
However, Salang was non-committal when asked if the state coalition would support Pakatan Harapan (PH) chairman Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim as the new prime minister.
“We are not talking about who is the prime minister. We are talking about the ‘titah’ (royal decree) for a unity government. So we leave it to the top leaders to decide who will be the prime minister,” he said.
Asked then if GPS continued to back Muhyiddin as prime minister, Salang replied: “That one I don’t know...but as a party within the component of GPS, PRS abides by the common decision of GPS but I believe everybody agrees if the king says we need a unity government then so be it.”
Separately, newly elected Selangau MP Edwin Banta, who is one of the five PRS MPs, denied the claim that they had withdrawn their support for Muhyiddin.
“No truth in the above. We fully support any decision made by top GPS leadership,” he said when contacted.
GPS chief Tan Sri Abang Johari Openg had said on Sunday that the state coalition will work with PN, Barisan Nasional (BN) and Gabungan Rakyat Sabah in the formation of a new government with Muhyiddin as the preferred prime minister.
However, the pact failed to materialise after BN announced that it would be an opposition in parliament.
Yesterday, Muhyiddin and Anwar were summoned to Istana Negara after the King found that not one of the MPs had the majority support to be prime minister.
During the meeting, the King had mooted the formation of a unity government but Muhyddin rejected the proposal, telling reporters later that PN had long decided not to work with PH.
At a stalemate, the Istana Negara summoned BN MPs and representatives of GPS this morning.
Four GPS MPs representing PRS, Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu Sarawak and Sarawak United People’s Party attended the meeting. However, none of the two MPs from Progressive Democratic Party (PDP), which is also a GPS member, was present. — Borneo Post
