KOTA KINABALU: Parti Warisan hopes for more support from the Kadazandusun Murut (KDM) community in this election, says Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal.
He said this is because the party has fielded capable candidates such as former diplomat Datuk Jilid Kuminding for the northern Kota Marudu seat and lawyer and former beauty queen Joanna Rampas for the Tuaran seat.
“I hope the KDM people will give us their backing so that we can feature more new faces (in Parliament),” he said, adding Rampas also represented the generation of new leaders within the party.
Earlier in his speech, Shafie said many had been misled and confused by leaders who were keen only to serve their own self-interest.
“Wake up. When (these leaders) want to become presidents (of political parties), ministers or deputy ministers, they divide our people - is this the struggle we want for our country,” he said.
Shafie also rubbished claims from Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) chairman Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor that the Sabah government once led by Parti Warisan had failed to manage the state properly.
The Warisan president reminded the Sabah Chief Minister that it was during Warisan’s short two years in power that the 5% sales tax on all petroleum products was implemented.
He said the Warisan government which was defeated by the then loose GRS coalition in the 2020 snap Sabah polls also managed to settle a RM1bil state bond debt to the Federal Government.
He said they also provided some RM600mil in assistance to the people as well as front liners during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, adding this was all done against a backdrop of political uncertainty in Sabah.
“We had planned for development when the economy was getting better but political stability was under threat.
“To say that we did not do anything (is wrong), we did our part,” Shafie told reporters after canvassing for votes for Warisan’s Penampang candidate Datuk Darell Leiking and Kota Kinabalu candidate Amanda Yeo near here on Friday night (Nov 11).
