The founding president of Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS), Tan Sri Joseph Pairin Kitingan, has called for unity and cooperation among Sabah’s political parties. He believes that by working together, the parties can regain and protect the state’s rights that have been lost or eroded over the past 60 years. Pairin stated that close and sincere cooperation is essential to strengthen Sabah’s efforts in safeguarding state rights for the benefit of the people’s future. He made these remarks in response to Sabah STAR’s proposal for a merger between the parties under the Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) coalition.
“In Sabah, we have to protect Sabah rights and Sabah’s democracy and its future as a team of Sabahans,” Pairin expressed during the 38th PBS Congress. The former Sabah chief minister believes it would be wise for PBS to collaborate with Sabah STAR in order to move forward together as a united front. He emphasized that cooperation does not necessarily mean merger, and parties can work together and support each other without sabotaging one another in their respective constituencies.
Pairin stressed the importance of such cooperation in fulfilling the people’s aspirations of preserving and reclaiming state rights, particularly those laws that were abolished under the Malaysian emergency. He reasoned that as these emergency laws are now invalidated, working together becomes crucial. Pairin further added that discussions between the parties on how to protect Sabah and its future in Parliament, with a sense of brotherhood and love for the state, are significant. He asserted the necessity for all communities in Sabah, not solely the Kadazandusun or Murut community, to unite and work together.
Delegates at the PBS Congress will be addressing the issue of cooperation or merger between PBS and Sabah STAR. The party has allowed its grassroots members to voice their opinions on the matter before making a decision. Despite this, PBS president Datuk Seri Maximus Ongkili did not touch upon the merger issue during his policy address at the meeting. However, the party’s deputy president, Datuk Seri Dr Joachim Gunsalam, encouraged the Youth and Wanita wings to discuss the matter beforehand.
In his policy speech, Ongkili proposed amending the party constitution to hold triennial meetings instead of annual ones and creating a new Puteri wing to accommodate new teen voters aged 18 and above. Ongkili’s speech was delivered by Dr Gunsalam, as he is currently undergoing speech therapy following a period of health issues.
Credit: The Star : News Feed
