KOTA KINABALU: Parti Bangsa Malaysia (PBM) will restructure its Sabah leadership line up during the party congress scheduled for Oct 1, says its president-designate Datuk Zuraida Kamaruddin.
She said all current appointments, including that of Datuk Mohamaddin Ketapi as Sabah PBM chief, were pro tem appointments and this would be addressed at the congress.
"We will restructure (the Sabah leadership) and announce the official line-up then," she told reporters here on Sunday (Sept 4) when asked if Mohamaddin's appointment had been accepted by the party.
On Aug 28, PBM president Datuk Larry Sng said Mohamaddin had been appointed Sabah PBM chairman after the Lahad Datu MP, who is also Segama assemblyman, officially joined the party.
Mohamaddin, a former Parti Warisan leader who quit the party on Oct 29, then joined Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) before leaving it in June.
On what PBM would do if its application to join Barisan Nasional was not accepted, she said that as a small party, it was looking at joining a coalition to support the government of the day.
She added that PBM believes in supporting the government of the day for the good of the country,
"We have to move into a coalition, so we are still looking at it (Barisan application). We are not worried. We have the strength, we have the people and we can move in any direction at any time," she said.
"For now, we are focussing on strengthening our party and recruiting members," she said, adding that despite its size, PBM commanded strong grassroots support.
She said it would hold a roadshow to introduce itself to Sabahans, similar to what it did in Perak and Selangor, with a Johor visit scheduled next week.
Zuraida said PBM would focus on defending the four parliamentary seats it currently held in the coming 15th General Election (GE15).
"We have to work hard and strengthen our position in the areas where we are strong and will prepare (to contest more)," she said.
At the press conference, Zuraida also announced the membership of two fresh faces in politics: Datuk Daud Amatzin, chief executive officer of the Malaysian Palm Oil Certification Council (MPOCC); and Jupperi Lenson, president of the Sabah Contractors Association (PKS).
Zuraida said that Jupperi will head the Kota Marudu division while Daud was from Tawau.
She added that PBM was applying to the Registrar of Societies to set up 25 divisions in Sabah and had obtained approval for six so far.
PBM currently has 3,000 registered members in Sabah.
