Bung can talk but seats will be decided by consensus, say Sabah leaders

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KOTA KINABALU: Sabah Umno may be targeting 14 seats in the state in the coming general election, but that does not mean it will come true, Perikatan Nasional (PN) leaders said.

PPBM vice-president Ronald Kiandee said that any party had the freedom to say whatever it pleased on seat matters but reminded everyone that a decision will eventually be made based on consensus between the parties in the coalition, FMT reported.

Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) deputy chairman and STAR president Jeffrey Kitingan also said Sabah Umno chief Bung Moktar Radin can wish for 14 seats, but it was just his view.

“We note that he (Bung) said that, which is his privilege. We can also say we want to contest 25 seats.

“We will sit down together and sort it out and I’m sure at the end of the day, we will have what is fair to all,” said the Keningau MP, after an informal meeting with Kiandee at his residence here today.

Bung had earlier this week said Sabah Umno intended to contest in at least 14 of the 25 Sabah parliamentary seats in GE15.

The Kinabatangan MP said research by the Sabah Umno election affairs department and research secretariat supported the party’s belief that these seats, of which one is held by Kiandee himself, could be won by Umno.

Bung said negotiations with the parties in GRS should be done transparently and as soon as possible.

Kiandee, who is Beluran MP, noted that such views are only party-level perspectives which should be brought up for discussion in the coalition meeting.

“There will be a process where everybody has a chance to explain why (they should contest in more seats) and their strength but in the end, all parties be it under GRS or PN, will need to find a consensus.

“Only through this consensus can we ensure a win for PN, GRS and all other component parties who support Muhyiddin Yassin as prime minister,” he said.

Meanwhile, Kiandee, who is agriculture and food industries minister, was confident the ruling parties in Sabah would eventually come to an agreement on seat allocations, as they did in the previous state elections.

“The same process took place in the last state elections – everybody had their numbers but in the end we agreed to a certain number of seats each, although there were some friendly fights among us,” he said.

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