KOTA KINABALU: It is business as usual for United Pasokmomogun KadazanDusun Murut Organization (UPKO) division in Tuaran after the departure of its former chief Datuk Seri Panglima Wilfred Bumburing and several leaders in July.
UPKO president Tan Sri Bernard Dompok said that the position of the party is as good as ever.
“What we see here is the emergence of newer leaders coming up to take up leadership roles in the party.
Dompok, who was met after officiating at UPKO Tuaran division’s delegates’ convention yesterday, made the remarks when asked about the party’s position in the district following the departure of Bumburing and his supporters.
“It augers well for the future of UPKO to get new people to come in and fill in the void create by the people who have left us,” he said.
In his speech earlier, Dompok said the Barisan Nasional (BN) leaders in the Tuaran Parliamentary constituency works well together, they are in sync with each other as well as with the local community.
“Datuk Madius, Datuk Louis Rampas (Kiulu) and Datuk Jahid Jahim (Tamparuli) have a symbiosis and consensus. If we do not have a team that works well together, we will not be successful,” he pointed out.
The cooperation and consensus however should not only be during election period but all the time especially in fighting for the people, he stressed.
He also said that UPKO has succeeded in contributing the people, state and country and will continue its struggles according to the aspiration of the people.
Among UPKO’s successes is the setting up of the Royal Commission of Inquiry to investigate the illegal immigrants’ presence in Sabah and the retaining of gas in the state.
“I am not saying that UPKO is solely responsible for the setting up of the Royal Commission of Inquiry as other BN component parties in the state have also been pushing for this. But I think that UPKO has always been steadfast in its stand that the Commission must be set up.
“We are grateful with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak is brave enough to do this as I have raised up the issue with two other former Prime Ministers but to no avail. Only Najib gave us the answer that we need,” he said.
BN, he said, is a party that listens to the people and this is clearly reflected in the way the government is being transformed to ensure that no one is left out in the country’s development.
UPKO will continue to play its part in BN’s contribution towards the country’s transformation, Dompok said and called on the party’s members to further strengthen UPKO and the coalition.