Voters Frustration Over New Sabah Cabinet Understandable Warisan

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Warisan vice-president Junz Wong has poured cold water on the prospect of a stable post-election coalition between his party and Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS), accusing GRS leaders of ignoring a clear voter mandate for an all-Sabahan government.
In an interview with Malaysiakini, Wong (above) said public frustration over BN’s inclusion in the new state cabinet led by Chief Minister Hajiji Noor is justified, given the ballot box message delivered in the recently concluded election.
“It’s totally understandable. If you look at the results, Sabahans across race and religion made it very clear they wanted a Sabah-owned government, just like in Sarawak,” Wong said in Kota Kinabalu.
Hajiji’s new GRS Plus administration also included BN’s sole assemblyperson, Jafry Ariffin, as the state’s new tourism, culture, and environment minister and Pakatan Harapan’s only assemblyperson, Jamawi Ja’afar, as the agriculture, fisheries, and food industries state minister.
ADSWong said voter behaviour across communities pointed to a consistent pattern.
Chinese-majority areas largely backed Warisan, many Muslim-majority seats swung to Warisan, Umno, and GRS, while Kadazan-Dusun-Murut (KDM) areas overwhelmingly chose local parties, even when voting for different coalitions.
“The message is crystal clear. Voters wanted Sabah parties. Out of 73 seats, only one Harapan candidate survived. Many others even lost their deposits.
“It’s overwhelmingly in favour of local-based parties,” he pointed out.
Wong, who defended his Tanjung Aru seat for the third term in the election, defeated DAP’s Kota Kinabalu MP Chan Foong Hin in a nine-cornered contest.
DAP was wiped out from Sabah after all of the party’s eight candidates, including state chairperson Phoong Jin Zhe, lost to Warisan.
‘Betrayal of mandate’
Commenting further, Wong criticised GRS leaders who secured strong KDM support only to turn around and work with BN, a move he described as contradicting their own “Rumah Kita, Kita Jaga” (we look after our own home) messaging.
Those dissatisfied with the move include two GRS assemblypersons, Jasnih Daya (Pantai Dalit) and Joniston Bangkuai (Kiulu), who had expressed unhappiness on social media over BN’s inclusion in Hajiji’s cabinet.
“People are wondering why leaders entrusted with KDM votes chose to include federal-based parties.
“It feels like a betrayal. Their numbers are insignificant,” Wong said.
GRS chief Hajiji Noor being sworn in as Sabah chief minister on Nov 30He further stressed that Warisan would not join a government that contradicted the voter mandate.
ADS“We’re not prepared to throw away the trust Sabahans placed in us just to get positions. If this is the direction, we will remain in the opposition and continue our struggle as a strong Sabahan bloc,” he added.
Warisan holds 25 seats in the 73-seat Sabah state assembly.
GRS-Warisan talks ‘poisoned by bad blood’
Wong acknowledged that before the polls, a Warisan-GRS combination had been internally considered as a potential route to stability.
However, he pointed to a long history of defections and failed negotiations.
He recalled how Warisan’s earlier administration collapsed due to party-hopping, followed by GRS allegedly continuing to entice Warisan assemblypersons even after talking about “stability”.
“You meet them to talk about stability, and the next thing you know, they’re buying your YBs. That’s what happened,” he said.
Seat negotiations also proved impossible, Wong added, citing Karambunai and Tanjong Kapor as examples where GRS refused to concede seats Warisan previously held.
“There were too many bad blood incidents before the election.
“But after the election, we thought we could start fresh, accept the people’s mandate, and form a Sabah government together,” he said.
Instead, he said, GRS chose to work with the “most-rejected” federally based party.
“It leaves us no choice but to keep fighting. Sabahans wanted a Sabah government, but that didn’t happen,” he added.
‘Don’t expect progress on 40pct claim’
Wong also cast doubt on the state’s ability to pursue Sabah’s long-standing 40 percent revenue entitlement under the new administration.
“If Sabahans entrust the 40 percent claim to this government, you won’t get anywhere. That’s the reality,” he said.
Wong reiterated that Warisan would remain consistent with its principles.
“We have to stick to our struggle for Sabah. If others choose differently, then we’ll continue as a strong opposition,” he added. - Mkini

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