KOTA KINABALU: Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s new political party will have zero impact on Sabah, says Penampang United Malays National Organisation (Umno) chief, Datuk John Ambrose.
He said the new party would not be able to make inroads as Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak had a better track record in the state than the former prime minister.
“Dr Mahathir was the prime minister for 22 years and it is the general consensus among Sabahans that he had done more harm than good for the state with his divide-and-rule strategy.
“However, Najib is different. Since becoming prime minister, he has brought development such as the Pan Borneo Highway. He treated Sabah fairly,” he said in a statement here yesterday.
He wondered how the new party could make its presence felt when even former Umno vice-president Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal and many others who were considered Mahathir loyalists declined to join the party.
“The new party will end up like Semangat 46. It will be gone after the 14th General Election,” said Ambrose, adding it would try to lure Umno members to join them.
He said Sabah enjoyed political stability under the federal leadership of Najib and state leadership of Chief Minister
Datuk Seri Musa Aman and the people were not willing to gamble away such stability. — Bernama