Star, SAPP's planned exit from GRS unsurprising - Shafie

Summary

• Warisan president Shafie Apdal claims Star and SAPP already mulled the exit from GRS since last year.

• However, Shafie questioned their timing, given that both parties had stayed with GRS for a full term.

Warisan president Shafie Apdal said he was not surprised by Parti Solidariti Tanah Airku (Star) and Sabah Progressive Party’s (SAPP) plans to exit the Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) coalition.

Describing the move as expected, Shafie, however, questioned their timing.

“They already told me last year, they said they would leave in September.

“Until now it hasn’t happened, but that’s their right,” he stated during a press conference today after welcoming nearly 200 new members to his party.

Earlier today, Malaysiakini reported that Star and SAPP are mulling quitting the Sabah-based coalition over concerns that GRS was conceding too much to Pakatan Harapan for the upcoming state polls.

Star president Jeffrey Kitingan confirmed that his party has decided on the matter.

“Yes… We just made our stand clear, very clear.

“There was no counting of numbers. They tried to persuade us. But there was no argument.

“It was amicable and respectful, as politics should be, as we are bound to meet again after the state election,” the Sabah deputy chief minister I added.

Kitingan had argued that allowing Harapan to contest in more than 20 seats would significantly compromise the political power of local parties.

Why now?

Shafie also took a swipe at Kitingan’s timing, adding that Star had stayed with GRS until the very end of the term.

“They’ve lived under the same roof for five years. Was that fair? If it wasn’t, why not speak up earlier?” he asked.

Shafie, however, stressed that he was more concerned about keeping Sabahans united rather than tracking Star’s political manoeuvres.

“I don’t want to think about their party or when they want to leave.

“What matters is uniting the people of Sabah. That’s our clear stand, we work with the rakyat,” he said.

Graft scandal

Kitingan is the latest state leader to be embroiled in the Sabah graft scandal.

On Sept 24, businessperson-turned-whistleblower Albert Tei released a video of his alleged conversation with Kitingan, whom he claimed took RM1.78 million from him, calling it the largest sum the businessperson had paid to any politician linked to the scandal.

The video clip was from a purported meeting at a Kuala Lumpur seafood restaurant on Oct 13, 2024, over the cancellation of mining exploration licences. In it, Tei detailed alleged payments to Kitingan.

The next day, Kitingan spent more than five hours giving his statement at the MACC office in Kota Kinabalu.

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