Sabah political climate serves as reminder for Sarawak state BN

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KUCHING: The exit of a few prominent leaders from PKR and DAP in Sabah will have some impact on the chances of Pakatan Harapan securing a sufficient number of seats in Sabah which could affect their results at national level in the long run.

Such an event might not be in BN’s favour in Sabah, however, said Sarawak BN Backbenchers Club chairman Abdullah Saidol today (Oct 4) when asked to comment on the latest political development in Sabah.

“But notwithstanding such situation in Sabah and the recent landslide results secured by Team Adenan in Sarawak State election 2016, the voters’ sentiments in Sarawak will not be taken for granted when it comes to Parliamentary Election. Sarawak has a different set of ‘frustrations’ and challenges compared to Sabah,” he reasoned.

At national level, the voters might consider different criteria and benchmark to consider.

“We in BN Sarawak will not take things for granted and complacent,” he pointed out.

Both MPs and State BN representatives must immediately work closely and coordinate efficiently to ensure that voters’ confidence and trust remain as high as the last Sarawak state election.

“At the same time, high expectation from the Federal with regards to our various  demands and negotiation might also influence voters in Sarawak.

“So like I said before, if previous election’s promises are not being entertained satisfactorily and favourable results are not secured as expected from negotiations with the Federal, Sarawak’s status as BN’s ‘Fixed Deposit’ at national level may slightly be affected,” he said.

“But at the same time, Sarawak’s opposition pack, prominently led by DAP is not doing well either, recently defeated Dudong assemblyman quit the party and there seems to be some turbulence at grassroot level probably due to the authoritarian style of some their leaders,” Abdullah said.

Prominent leaders in Sabah made the ‘painful’ decision to leave their respective parties citing that these Peninsular Malaysia-based parties are unable to fight for the rights of Sabahans as spelt out in the Malaysia Agreement when compared to local-based parties – be they in the opposition or government fold.