KOTA KINABALU: Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor headed into the Parti Warisan stronghold of Lahad Datu to tell the people there that the Opposition could do nothing to bring change for them.
"There is nothing the people can expect from the Opposition because they cannot bring about the change people are seeking for," he said during the Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) roadshow in the Sabah east coast town.
The Lahad Datu parliamentary seat, with four state constituencies, is a Warisan stronghold with the Parliament seat and all four state seats held by the party.
However, Lahad Datu MP Datuk Mohamaddin Ketapi, who is also Segama assemblyman, had quit Warisan to join Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia late last year before quitting to join Parti Bangsa Malaysia last month.
Hajiji, who is GRS chairman and Sabah Bersatu chief, told a crowd of about 4,000 people that voters in the area should vote wisely in the coming general election if they want real change.
"It is a fact that only elected representatives from the government can bring faster development and progress for the people of Lahad Datu," he said.
Hajiji said that GRS was open to accepting local parties that were interested to join the coalition.
"The GRS coalition is fighting together to ensure that Sabah continues to progress and succeed and is led by a coalition of local parties.
"If we love Sabah, this is the time for us to be united in GRS," he said.
He added that GRS was working together with Umno-Barisan Nasional at the state level for the benefit of Sabah.
Hajiji urged the leaders and members of the GRS component parties in Lahad Datu to work hard and translate their support by ensuring GRS candidates won the Lahad Datu parliamentary seat in the 15th General Election (GE15).
"In addition to the parliamentary seats, we also need to ensure that state assembly seats in Lahad Datu, which are currently held by the Opposition, would also be won by GRS in the next state election (which is not due until 2025)," he added.
At least four Opposition parties have applied to join GRS, which currently comprises five parties.
The five parties are Sabah Bersatu, PBS, Sabah STAR, SAPP and Usno.
The Lahad Datu GRS roadshow on Monday (Sept 5) was the third after it was launched in Keningau and moved to Kudat parliamentary constituencies.
