When a group of Kadazandusun professionals, including retired senior government officials, signed up this week to join former chief minister Joseph Pairin Kitingan's Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS), newspaper reports created more than a cursory interest among public and political observers it also raised a few eye-brows, especially among its opponents.

For one, it has been read by most political observers as the great respect still enjoyed by Pairin, who took over as the Huguan Siou (paramount chief) of the Kadazan community soon after the death of the Tun Fuad (formerly Donald) Stephens, the then chief minister, in a plane crash in Sabah during the late 1970s.

No matter how hard they may have tried to do so, there may be no way Bernard Dompok, president of United Pasok Kadazan Organisation(UPKO), and Joseph Kurup, president of the crisis-ridden Parti Bersatu Rakyat Sabah (PBRS) could fit into the same shoes in the eyes of the Kadazandusun-Murut community.

Pairin lost little of that and, in fact, gained more respect even when his PBS government was toppled and he went into the opposition for nearly a decade until being finally taken back into Barisan Nasional.

Public ceremony

Earlier this week, among the respected retired senior government officers from the community who joined PBS in a public ceremony witnessed by Pairin's deputy Dr Maximus Ongkili, were two former deputy state secretaries Ignatius Bantoi from Penampang and Claudius Roman from Papar.

The others were Sabah Housing and Town Development Authority (SHTDA) general manager Verus Aman Shan, Finance Ministry's former permanent secretary Jipanus Molukun, medical practitioners Dr Jaochim Gunsalan and Dr Vellus Junius, environmental consultant Dr Beth Baikan, lawyers Anne Gilong and Anita Periuk and accountant Janes Albanus.

A veteran Sabah journalist who asked not to be identified described these professionals as among the many 'silent supporters' of PBS for many years until they surfaced recently, promoted in part by PBS' re-admission into BN.

Even before this, PBS' own ranks had been bolstered by the return of five PBRS' state assembly representatives, all originally elected on PBS tickets, driven away by a crisis over leadership control between Joseph Kurup and Dr Jeffrey Kitingan, Pairin's maverick politician brother.

Rather than getting caught in between, the five assemblypersons decided to go back to PBS, bolstering morale within the party not to say its membership ranks in the 48-seat state legislative assembly.

"Although the Registrar of Societies has determined that Joseph Kurup, now a nominated state assemblyperson and state minister, is the rightful leader of PBRS, the fight is far from over," the journalist said.

"He is still going around as if he is the party chief," he said of Jeffrey, who was elected president by his own faction before the ROS eventually intervened and declared Kurup the lawful leader.

Single political umbrella

Another experienced hand in Sabah politics told malaysiakini that following recent developments, including PBS' re-admission into BN, the Kadazandusun community appears to be rallying increasingly around PBS.

"Even Bernard Dompok and Joseph Kurup believe that the Kadazandusun community should come under a single political umbrella," he said, adding they have talked publicly of dissolving their respective parties as the first step towards cementing links with PBS.

"Although its strength comes from the Kadazandusun community, PBS is a multi-racial party, and three of its present 14 state assemblypersons are Chinese.

Pairin would prefer things stay as they are, at least for the time being, but with PBS as the political rallying point for the Kadazandusun community."

Both UPKO (which has three MPs and two assemblypersons within its ranks) and PBRS (which has only two assemblypersons, including Kurup, a nominated assemblyperson) have already seen their influence gradually on the wane after PBS' return to BN.

A number of PBS men have already been appointed to local councils and state bodies.

Post for PBS deputy

Pairin, who served as a minister in the Harris Salleh-led Berjaya Government and as chief minister after PBS toppled the same government, is said to be more than happy to stay as Huguan Siou and PBS president. He is said to harbour no ambition of coming back as chief minister.

Speculation has it that PBS deputy president Dr Maximus, younger brother of former federal minister Dr James Ongkili, is likely to be offered a federal post, if he is not appointed to the state cabinet.

Maximus is seen to be playing an increasingly active role as a PBS leader in public, with Pairin takingwhat seems to be a backroom seat at times, attending only to more major matters and going down to meet party grass-roots.

PBS' rising influence in Sabah politics has, however, not gone unnoticed among other political parties. It is said to be causing 'some concern' to the party's opponents as well as some other BN state leaders, including those in Sabah Umno "as to what the party's ultimate aim is."

Public apology

Recently, one of Umno Sabah senior leaders Lajim Ukin, one of the deputy chief ministers and formerly of PBS before his defection which caused the collapse of PBS government in the early 1990s, publicly apologised to Pairin for his actions and asked for forgiveness.

In his usual magnanimous self, Pairin, invited by Lajim to open a public function, accepted the apology, saying "Let by-gones be by-gones and let's look to the future and work together."

This public apology by Lajim to his former party boss was given wide publicity in Sabah papers and must have made a lot of Umno members wonder at Lajim's motives.

"PBS has a hidden agenda with its return to BN," claimed one Umno supporter who is closely associated with the United Sabah Islam Association (USIA).

A test for the 'new alliance' within Sabah BN will come with the coming parliamentary elections, expected in the first half of 2003, when the number of parliamentary seats in Sabah will be increased from the present 20 to 28. The number of state seats will be increased from 48 to 62 with the changes to the electoral boundaries.

According to a PBS leader, 20 of the 62 state seats are predominantly-Kadazandusun with the Malay/Muslim community controlling 30 and the rest Chinese or mixed constituencies. There are presently only six predominantly Chinese seats.

Dicey issue

The distribution of the state and parliamentary seats could be a dicey issue, especially among the Kadazandusun-based parties PBS, PBRS and Upko.

So long as Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad is still around, it is not expected to face much of a problem when it comes to allocating and distributing seats among the component parties.

What will happen when he is not around and if Mahathir's successor preferd to leave it to the parties themselves to sort things out.

Without making an exit from BN, seasoned observers see an alternative to winning more seats by way of proxy candidates who after winning would declare their support for their sponsoring party or parties.

Unless the three Kadazandusun-based parties could reach some kind of an understanding before then.

Certain quarters already say the dissolution of PBRS is seen as something imminent other than for reason of merger.

After its internal crisis broke out it looks increasingly like a party with "a few generals and no soldiers" it has now been left with only one elected assemblyperson (Jeffrey) and one nominated assemblyperson (Kurup).

"If any member feels somewhat embarrassed to be a part of PBRS now, it is quite understandable," said another Sabah-based political analyst.

Jeffrey is trying to prevent the dissolution of PBRS so he can be PBRS leader, but Kurup is said not to be prepared to abandon PBRS and let Jeffrey take over something which the latter has been looking forward to.

And brother Joseph Pairin would probably not want too many Kadazandusun-based parties around as well.

Jeffrey may, therefore, find himself increasingly isolated politically, and possibly even without a constituency to stand on a BN ticket in the next state elections.

At the same time, however, the Kadazandusun community might then have managed to forge stronger political unity under one or, at most, two Kadazandusun-based parties.