Muafakat Nasional may be less suitable in Sabah, says Zahid
Without elaborating, he mooted the setting up of "Muafakat Sabah".
"The Muafakat Nasional may be less suitable in Sabah because of the differences in the political situation," he said...
KIMANIS POLLS | Muafakat Nasional, the Umno-PAS cooperation bloc, does not fit well in the political situation in Sabah, Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said.
Without elaborating, he mooted the setting up of "Muafakat Sabah".
"The Muafakat Nasional may be less suitable in Sabah because of the differences in the political situation," he said.
"However, this is the Muafakat Sabah that starts in Kimanis," Zahid said at a ceramah in Kampung Pimping in Kimanis last night.
He added that Muafakat Sabah would be able to unite all races in the state.
Zahid said this after PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang introduced Umno Kimanis chief Mohamad Aliman as the Muafakat Nasional candidate contesting under BN.
"This is important to those who participate in the cooperation bloc, (including) Umno, PAS, MIC, MCA, PBS and non-extreme non-Islamic groups," Hadi said.
Muafakat Nasional is a charter (photo) signed between Umno and PAS on Sept 16, 2019 (photo).
It had campaigned successfully for the BN candidate in the Tanjung Piai by-election in November 2018.
It is expected that the Muafakat Nasional will be formally set up in May 2020
Previously, Sabah BN was reportedly in discussions with other opposition parties in the state to cooperate in the Jan 18 Kimanis by-election.
Five opposition parties - Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS), Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), Parti Solidariti Tanah Airku (Star), United Sabah National Organisation (Usno) and Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) - have decided to stay out of the by-election.
Zahid and PAS secretary-general Takiyuddin Hassan declined to speak with the media to further clarify Hadi’s statement.
In his speech earlier, Hadi also urged the Muslims in Kimanis to choose a candidate from the coalition that is less detrimental to the people.
"This is a battle between a Muslim and another Muslim (party), but we have to see the composition of the parties. We (must) choose a (party) that is less detrimental to Muslims. It is not that we want to fight anyone," he said.
"We know that Umno made a mistake in the past, but Pakatan Harapan made a bigger mistake."
Hadi (below) then pointed his finger at DAP, which he claimed objected to the Jawi script lesson in vernacular schools.
"We see that DAP has shown extremism in Harapan and in the administration of the country. It dares to interfere in Jawi teaching and the status of Muslims," he said.
"What is DAP? DAP originated from the People's Action Party (PAP), which ruled Singapore and was formed by a group of fanatic Chinese.
"We don't want (these) fanatic Chinese. When they are in power, they do not care about (others), not only bumiputera and Muslims, but also the Kadazan Dusun," Hadi said.
"We do not bark at the hill. We are not barking at Warisan and Bersatu, but we bark at the dogs and pigs at the hill," he added.
The cabinet has decided to allow parents to make a call if they want their children in Year Four in primary schools to be taught the Jawi script.
The Sabah cabinet also decided that Jawi should be an optional subject and not included in the Bahasa Melayu syllabus.
Other parties, including MIC and MCA, did not react the way DAP responded on the Jawi script lesson, Hadi said.
He said the Muslims in Tanjung Piai picked an MCA candidate, whom they viewed as someone not fanatic.
"We should choose the best candidate to defend us," he told the ceramah perdana held at Pimping, the largest polling district with 3,057 voters, which comprises 91 percent bumiputera Muslims.
Kimanis is a semi-urban seat comprising 63.16 percent Muslim bumiputera, 30.67 percent non-Muslim bumiputera, 3.59 percent Chinese and 2.58 percent others.
The Kimanis by-election was called after the apex court nullified the 2018 poll result for the Sabah parliamentary seat. Voting will be held on Jan 18, with nomination day being Jan 4 and early voting on Jan 14.
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