Horse-trading heats up

KOTA KINABALU: The numbers game is in full swing here after Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor (pic) lost his majority overnight, with the balance of power resting on which side Sabah Pakatan Harapan aligns with.

Hajiji is battling to keep his Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) government in power as Barisan Nasional and Parti Warisan make a bid to gain a majority in the 79-seat state assembly.

GRS has 29 assemblymen against the combined 32 representatives of Barisan and Warisan.

At press time, GRS had the support of five Sabah Barisan dissidents, as well as three other assemblymen – one each from Pakatan Harapan Rakyat Sabah (Harapan Rakyat) and PAS, and independent Kuamut assemblyman Datuk Masiung Banah – giving it a total of 37 seats.

For now, both sides fall short of the simple majority of 40 seats required to form the state government, with GRS lacking three seats.

Barisan, led by Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin, now has 13 assemblymen while Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal’s Warisan has 19 seats.

Both Barisan and Warisan are also getting the support of Parti Kesejahteraan Demokratik Masyarakat (KDM) helmed by Datuk Peter Anthony.

KDM, with its three assemblymen, is seen as tilting towards the Barisan-Warisan group after Anthony said Hajiji should step down as Chief Minister as he no longer commanded a majority in the state assembly.

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Barring any further crossovers from either side over the next 48 hours that could tilt the numbers again, Sabah Pakatan is the kingmaker on who gets to rule the state.

On its part, Sabah Pakatan is proposing a unity government at the state level.

“We agree that a Sabah unity government can be formed as was the practice at the federal level,” the seven Pakatan assemblymen said in a joint statement yesterday.

The Pakatan representatives also stressed that they do not support any effort to overthrow the government through the “back door”.

At the same time, they said that they “do not agree for the state assembly to be dissolved if this crisis continues”.

“This is in line with our principle to ensure political stability and not engage in measures like the Sheraton Move,” said the group, comprising Datuk Christina Liew (PKR-Api Api), Datuk Poon Fung Ming (DAP-Tanjung Papat), Datuk Ewon Benedick (Upko-Kadamaian), Phoong Jin Zhe (DAP-Luyang), Jannie Lasimbang (DAP-Kapayan), Tan Lee Fatt (DAP-Likas) and Peto Galim (PKR-Inanam).

Yesterday, intense horse-trading was the order of the day as Hajiji and his rivals, Bung-Shafie, raced to gather majority support.

Hajiji met with Yang di-Pertua Negeri Tun Juhar Mahiruddin at Istana Negeri yesterday afternoon.

No official statements were made following the meeting though political circles are abuzz with talk indicating that the governor had asked for statutory declarations of support from assemblymen.

Going by Article 7 (1) of the Sabah Constitution, the Chief Minister would have to quit if he loses the majority in the state assembly.

Article 7 (1) states that “if the Chief Minister ceases to command the confidence of a majority of the members of the Legislative Assembly, then, unless at his request the Yang di-Pertua Negeri dissolves the assembly, the Chief Minister shall tender the resignation of the members of the Cabinet.”

Hajiji has the option to prove his majority in the assembly, which is expected to sit on Tuesday.