Baptism of fire for new Sabah PKR chief Azmin

Many Sabah PKR members are puzzled by newly-appointed chief Azmin Ali's line that the party should focus on attracting "some big names and personalities" as part of the restructuring process at the state level.

All liaison committees at divisional level have been dissolved and new appointments will be made soon.

This is being seen as a baptism of fire for Azmin in the state, although not in Sabah PKR itself.

Also the Gombak MP and state assemblyperson for Bukit Antarabangsa, he replaced party adviser Anwar Ibrahim as the Sabah PKR head recently.

Azmin's take on the need for "some big guns" is based on the thinking that the party is plagued by dissension and weak leadership at divisional level.

This has been attributed to the lack of big guns in the Sabah chapter, a point that is hotly disputed by the party faithful.

"Disciplinary issues happen in all parties but that doesn't mean we (PKR in Sabah) are disintegrating," said outgoing Tenom divisional chief Gonsubin Benedict Yosundang.

"I agree there are individuals who are not in agreement with me in my division and have failed to attend meetings despite reminders. I disagree with the notion that the Tenom PKR is weak."

The infamous Tenom area, where former Sabah Chief Minister Harris Salleh lost his deposit in the 1985 state election, is cited as a case in point. The party has apparently discovered to its dismay that many divisional leaders have switched to "another opposition party".

Generally, "another opposition party" used to be the euphemism reserved for Sabah People's Progressive Party (Sapp). It has claimed to have received 3,500 members since its pullout from the ruling Barisan Nasional on Sept 17 last year but PKR leaders have said these numbers are from the ruling coalition "because it would be pointless pinching from us since we are in the same boat".

PKR vice-president Jeffrey Gimpoi Kitingan said he sees Tenom as "a storm in a teacup".

"At one time, there were some issues with leadership at the state level," he admitted.

"It was during this time that a former Sapp supreme council member, Jimmy Jawatah, decided to return to his old party. Probably, he expected too much too quickly from us and as a result couldn't get along with the other PKR leaders in Tenom.

"Whether people are with Sapp or PKR is the same for us. We are engaged in the same struggle to oust the BN from power. There is no issue whatsoever with Sapp. Our principle stands - that is to face the BN one-on-one."

‘Keep out warlords'

A green activisit whose sympathies clearly lie with PKR warned that Sabah PKR, under Azmin, is in danger of remaining old wine in a new wineskin.

"Who are these so-called big guns? These people are actually nobodies although they seem to have money to create trouble for PKR at the divisional level," said the activisit who said he is not a member of PKR and who also requested anonymity.

"Ultimately, it will be the people who will decide, not these so-called big guns who are actually discredited warlords from various BN component parties."

He said Sabah PKR should "go with the new, young and brave" and not recruit even more warlords to take over the party in Sabah.

The warlords already in the party, he suggested, should be confined to certain areas of the state to minimise the damage they could do to the party at the ballot box.

He named some of 'warlords' as Jeffrey (left) , a younger brother of Sabah deputy Chief Minister Joseph Pairin Kitingan, and Kota Kinabalu lawyer Christina Liew.

He stopped short of calling former Sabah PKR chief and Kota Kinabalu lawyer Ansari Abdullah a warlord.

"You need a person like Ansari. He was not allowed to carry on his work peacefully as the Sabah PKR chief. So, he was asked to step aside and Anwar took over."

Jeffrey denied the accusation, pointing out that the big guns that Azmin referred to "is just an idea".

"The point is that we need people who are popular and can attract support for us," said Jeffrey.

"It doesn't mean we are going to hand over the party to the big guns. We are committed to attracting the young, especially the professionals. These are the people who can access the information and make use of the new media to reach out to the people."

Jeffrey said he has no issue with Liew, the party's losing candidate at the last general election in the parliamentary seat of Kota Kinabalu and the state seat of Api Api.

"Sometimes, we need people like Liew. They may be a bit too aggressive for some people's liking but this can be tempered with some diplomacy," he said.

Young professionals sorely needed

Jeffrey declined to comment on the widespread notion that Liew had led Anwar by his nose while he was state chief and that she had monopolised his local schedule to the extent that "anyone wanting to see the man had to go through her".

On a personal note, he pointed out that he had always been consistent in his struggle for the political autonomy of Sabah, the rights of the state and a greater share of the federal government for Sabah and Sarawak.

"I only switched party when I discovered that it no longer subscribed to my political struggle," said Jeffrey.

He had moved from Parti Bersatu Sabah to Parti Bersatu Rakyat Sabah (PBRS) - an unsuccessful attempt to form his own political vehicle - to Angkatan Keadilan Rakyat. Then he went back to PBRS, and moved next to a still-born membership in Umno, before finally finding a home in PKR.

Ansari conceded the need for Sabah PKR to work on the young but said there would be problems "as long as poverty and ignorance keeps BN in power".

"I have 20 graduates in my Tuaran division and none are willing to come forward to take the lead. I have told them that after 30 years I would like to step aside but they prefer that I carry on while they hide behind me," lamented Ansari.

"They are not like the young in Peninsular Malaysia who refuse to be threatened about the future. The Sabah youth used to be once like that but not any more."

Ansari said only the urban Chinese and the middle-aged among the bumiputeras are with Sabah PKR in the struggle for change.

"Much will depend on how the Pakatan Rakyat state governments in Peninsular Malaysia fare," he said.

"This is the only factor that will swing the people of Sabah and Malaysia towards the opposition in future elections. There will be four million new people eligible to vote in the next general election.

"These people will decide the next government. Meanwhile, we will keep reaching out to the people of Sabah especially the bumiputeras and the young.

"Other issues like warlord-ism, and whether we should have more young people in the party, are not really the main issues. Even the shameless behaviour of the police and others in government, in favour of the BN cannot prevent the opposition from coming to power once the people wake up."