Should Grs Mend Ties With Bn Before Sabah Polls

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 On its own, GRS can champion regional autonomy, multicultural unity, and secure Sabah’s MA63 rights.
From Idris Mokhtar
I was intrigued by a pointed question which FMT asked at the end of its recent video report on the Sabah mining scandal: Can Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) repair its fractured relationship with Sabah Barisan Nasional (BN) in time for the upcoming state election?
On hearing it, my mind was cast back to how the Sabah ruling coalition came to be and how it has morphed over five short years into what it is today.
GRS originally emerged as a strategic alliance of convenience. Formed ahead of the 2020 state polls, it united Perikatan Nasional (PN), Sabah BN and Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) under a single banner. Its objective was clear: unseat the ruling Warisan Plus administration.
At the time, GRS was a hotchpotch of national coalitions (PN and BN) and Sabah-based parties (STAR, SAPP, PBRS and PBS). In contrast, its rival, Warisan Plus, was wholly local and boasted a strong grassroots identity.
Nonetheless, against the odds, GRS, backed by then prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin, won 38 of the 73 seats on offer in the state assembly against Warisan Plus’s 32.
As a result, on Sept 29, 2022, Hajiji Noor, then head of Sabah Bersatu, was appointed chief minister.
Governing was initially tough, with Hajiji having to navigate coalition politics carefully, while ensuring he was not affected by the increasing instability of Muhyiddin’s backdoor federal administration.
The Sabah-centric pivot
Muhyiddin’s administration fell in August 2021, and by March the following year, GRS was looking to redefine itself.
It registered itself officially as a coalition, severed ties with its peninsula-controlled counterparts, and invited only Sabah-based parties into the fold. That pivot transformed GRS into a vehicle for regional autonomy and allowed it to champion its now ubiquitous “Sabah First” mantra.
Despite this, GRS retained a firm grip on the administration, partnering with Sabah BN, which then held 14 seats, and Sabah Pakatan Harapan (PH), which had three.
It was, for want of a better word, a practical alliance.
A failed coup, a fortified GRS
In early January 2023, that brittle relationship was shattered by Sabah Umno chief Bung Moktar Radin’s despicable Kinabalu Move.
Bung had attempted to unseat Hajiji as chief minister but was thwarted by five of his own party’s assemblymen who defied party orders and backed the GRS chairman.
Hajiji went on to strengthen GRS’s grip on power, taking control of 42 constituencies following political realignments and defections.
Clear political identity
Now firmly anchored in Sabah, GRS governs as an exclusively local coalition. It champions regional autonomy, multicultural unity, and is pursuing its rights under the Malaysia Agreement 1963.
It has worked well with Sabah PH, which is also part of the state government. With only seven seats, PH’s presence in the state may be modest, but the cooperation strengthens GRS’s place in Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s unity government.
The problem with BN
Sabah BN, by contrast, offers GRS little, if any, strategic value.
Since the Kinabalu Move, Bung has made no effort to reconcile with Hajiji.
On the contrary, he has been openly critical of the chief minister—always looking to launch random attacks on him.
Bung also unsuccessfully attempted to link Hajiji to wrongdoing in the mining scandal. Hajiji, however, has been cleared of any wrongdoing by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission.
For his part, Hajiji has dismissed Bung as a “dreamer” and an “outdated leader”.
Bung is also saddled with an ongoing corruption trial for which his defence has been called.
Meanwhile, BN and Umno are facing mounting challenges at both federal and state levels, marked by leadership divisions, deepening factionalism, declining popularity, and a shrinking electoral base.
Bung has boasted that Sabah BN is prepared to go solo, but Umno’s top two leaders—Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and Mohamad Hasan—have candidly conceded that the party cannot contest the state election on its own.
Even a proposed alliance with Sabah PH is likely not enough.
GRS well-positioned
With momentum, numbers, and a growing Sabah-first identity, GRS is already well-positioned for the next election.
A strategic tie-up with Sabah PH appears to be the coalition’s best bet for another term in office while securing its position in Putrajaya.
On the other hand, Sabah BN has nothing to offer.
So why bother to reconcile? - FMT
Idris Mohktar is a FMT reader.
The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.

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