PETALING JAYA: DAP’s Teresa Kok has labelled as absurd a suggestion that Pakatan Harapan (PH) pull out of Sabah so that Shafie Apdal’s party can take on BN in straight fights.
The DAP vice-chairperson was commenting on the suggestion from Universiti Malaya political analyst Associate Prof Awang Azman Awang Pawi.
Kok said while state issues gained traction with Sabahan voters, the degree of the rise in such sentiments should not be overrated to warrant the call for PH’s withdrawal.
“Moreover, this also does not mean that Shafie is acceptable to all Sabahans and that he is able to unite all local political parties to have one-on-one against BN in next general election,” she said, adding Shafie’s standing among local Opposition parties has yet to be tested.
She added that Awang should not forget that DAP and PKR are not new to the Sabahans, with the DAP having won four parliamentary seats in Sabah in the 1986 General Election.
“The results of GE13, proved that both DAP and PKR were well accepted by Sabahans compared with the local Opposition parties and individuals.”
She said the Opposition pact could have won many more seats had it not been for multi-cornered fights and the alleged use of money politics by BN in Sabah’s interior areas.
“The GE13 results tell us that both DAP and PKR should capitalise on the popularity we already have in Sabah and to continue to work harder on the ground to make a greater breakthrough,” she said, adding Awang Azman’s comments indicated that he was not in touch with the ground and political reality.
Yesterday, in commenting on the flurry of resignations of Sabah PKR and Sabah DAP leaders from their parties, Awang Azman said the current ethno-nationalism sentiments in Sabah and Sarawak meant PH parties would be viewed as “outsiders”.
He added that PH would not benefit from multi-cornered fights and that it would be better for PH to enter into discussions with Shafie to ensure both their objectives are accomplished.
Last month, former Umno Vice-President Shafie Apdal announced plans to “take over” a Sabahan party to form a new multiracial Sabah-based party, alongside former PKR Vice-President and Penampang MP Darell Leiking.