Shafie speaking at the press conference.
KOTA KINABALU (Nov 20): Parti Warisan (Warisan) will work with any party or coalition that prioritizes Sabah and its people as well as have the capability to form a stable government.
Its president, Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal, pointed out that even with only three parliamentary seats, the party can enhance the political stability of the country.
Speaking at a press conference at the party’s headquarters here on Sunday, Shafie who retained the Semporna parliamentary seat, stressed that the rakyat have made their decision in the 15th General Election and their mandate must be respected.
“Whoever is capable of forming the federal government would surely need the support from parties like Warisan. For Warisan, what is important is the state and political stability in the country as well as issues that need to be resolved in the next five years.
“We cannot waste time thinking about the existing political turmoil,” he said.
When asked if any party leaders have reached out to Warisan or him personally to talk about possible cooperation in forming the government, Shafie replied, “(yes) since last night all the way to this morning.
“They have reached out to me and my deputy. We will see which party looks after the interest of Malaysians in Sabah and ensures political stability in the country. Equally important is the survival of Warisan therefore we have to be very pragmatic and realistic in the current situation,” he stressed.
On suggestions for Warisan to team up with GPS and GRS to form the Borneo Bloc as a way to show its seriousness in the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) issue, Shafie said that Sabah is his priority.
“I have to be very pragmatic and realistic, first thing first is the Sabah side and then the Sarawak side after that the Borneo Bloc and also the country. I cannot just be thinking of those guys in Kuala Lumpur, I have to think about the people in Sabah, what are their demands.
“We look into where the areas that can be realized are, we cannot be just working with any Tom Dick or Harry. What is fundamental for us is that people’s decisions have been made and we have to respect that,” he stressed.
When asked about the election losses in West Malaysia, Shafie denied that venturing across the pond had been a misstep for Warisan, adding that the party aims to strengthen its peninsula presence in the future.
Shafie also said that it is time to stop blaming each other as what is already done is a done deal adding, “Let’s move forward for the country for the people.”
When asked if Warisan’s expansion to Peninsular Malaysia had affected the party’s results in Sabah, Shafie said that it was not as what caused Warisan to only win three out of the 25 seats it contested was the ‘red wave’.
“The tsunami came and we lost a lot of support in our strongholds. Particularly the Chinese areas,” he said, adding that the party also lost support in Kadazan Dusun Murut (KDM) areas.
“Support from KDM has been our weakest link since day one and we need to improve our support in these areas,” he said.
In the GE15.on Sunday, Warisan won three out of 52 parliamentary seats contested through Shafie (Semporna), Isnaraissah Munirah Majilis (Kota Belud) and Datuk Yusof Apdal (Lahad Datu).