Kota Kinabalu: Datuk Seri Dr Jeffrey Kitingan denied that Parti Solidariti Tanah Airku (Star) is planning to leave the Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) coalition.
The Star President said a viral video of him suggesting otherwise had been misinterpreted and taken out of context.
“The clip was part of a conversation during our party’s anniversary event, where I was asked what Star would do if GRS were forced to work with Barisan Nasional (BN) and Pakatan Harapan (PH.
window.googletag = window.googletag || {cmd: []};googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.defineSlot('/22826383987/dailyexpress_inline', [1, 1], 'gpt-passback').addService(googletag.pubads());googletag.enableServices();googletag.display('gpt-passback');});“In that context, I said, ‘Yes, we will leave GRS, but remain in government.’ But the video only captured that line without the background,” he said, when contacted. Jeffrey, who is also Deputy Chief Minister, reaffirmed Star’s commitment to GRS, of which it is a founding member.
The short clip was first posted on TikTok by an independent social media account and quickly went viral, sparking speculation about Star’s position in the coalition.
Meanwhile, Star communications director Datuk Jalumin Bayogoh said it would not be swayed by attempts to create divisions and remain focused on preparing for the 17th Sabah state election (PRN-17).
“We will continue defending our principle of ‘Rumah Kita, Kita Jaga, Sabah Kita Jaga’ with our GRS partners,” he said in a statement.
Jalumin also said Star is lodging a police report over a separate news portal’s article that allegedly linked the party to the Sabah mineral licence cartel scandal involving businessman Datuk Albert Tei.
“That report is false and defamatory. We will not tolerate such slander,” he said.