Star leaders' decision to back GRS expected, nothing new - Kitingan

Parti Solidariti Tanah Airku (Star) president Jeffrey Kitingan said the decision of five of his incumbent assemblypersons to back Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) instead of following him into the state election on their own is “nothing new”.

“I respect the decision of the five Star leaders who have chosen to remain with GRS. Each person must act according to their conscience.

“I have seen this before (in my political journey), and I am not surprised,” he said in a statement last night.

Kitingan’s comments follow caretaker chief minister Hajiji Noor’s remarks that five incumbent Star representatives would support GRS, after Kitingan’s party was expelled from the coalition on Thursday.

The five incumbents also hold various top positions in Star, including Ellron Angin (Sook) and Robert Tawik (Bingkor), who are deputy presidents. The others are Abidin Madingkir (Paginatan), Annuar Ayub (Liawan) and Flovia Ng (Tulid).

The decision distances them from their president after Star’s membership was automatically revoked from the coalition for opting to contest using its own logo.

Hajiji emphasised that GRS would not stop Star or any other party from taking their own path.

“If they use their own logo, they are no longer GRS and will contest against us,” he said when announcing the dissolution of the state assembly yesterday.

Move raises questions

The five incumbents’ move raises questions about Kitingan’s hold over his party and whether he will be forced to find replacement candidates for their seats.

It remains unclear if the five will be fielded as official GRS candidates in the coming polls.

Kitingan had split from GRS after clashing with the coalition over seat-sharing arrangements with peninsula-based Pakatan Harapan.

His solo push, however, now leaves him further isolated as most of his incumbents stand with Hajiji.

Kitingan and several GRS leaders are also grappling with corruption allegations linked to mineral exploration projects in the state.

Two of the five Star incumbents – Ellron and Tawik – are accused of taking bribes from businessperson Albert Tei, though Ellron has denied the charges.

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