Hajiji, new ministers get back to work, eager to put political turmoil behind them

KOTA KINABALU: Hours after reshuffling his state Cabinet, Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor was back to work, attending a dinner reception by the Consul General of China here on Wednesday night (Jan 11), putting behind him a political crisis that had gripped Sabah.

This was also Hajiji’s first official appearance as Chief Minister since the political uncertainty began unfolding on Jan 5 when he sent other Cabinet members to represent him at government functions.

Sabah head of state Tun Juhar Mahiruddin was the guest of honour at the event hosted by the Consul General of China in Kota Kinabalu, Huang Shi-Fang, at the Sabah International Convention Centre (SICC) here.

Also present were Hajiji’s newest Cabinet members, namely Sabah Pakatan Harapan chief Datuk Christina Liew, who was reappointed the state Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister, and Sabah DAP secretary Phoong Jin Zhe, who was named Industrial Development Minister.

Besides the Pakatan duo, Hajiji also appointed Datuk Shahelmey Yahya as his new Deputy Chief Minister III (DCM III) as well as the state Works Minister, replacing Sabah Barisan Nasional-Umno chief Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin.

Bung Moktar had severed ties with the Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) government on Jan 6, triggering the potential fall of Hajiji’s 27-month-old administration.

But Shahelmey, the former state community development and people’s wellbeing minister, together with four other Sabah Barisan assemblymen, went against the move and instead pledged support for Hajiji.

With support from the five, seven from Sabah Pakatan, as well as GRS and friendly representatives, Hajiji held on to power with the backing of 44 assemblymen, four more than the 40 needed for a simple majority in the 79-member state assembly.

Following the fallout within Sabah Barisan, state Umno communications director Ghazalie Ansing called for strict action to be taken against the five dissidents who he called “traitors”, including sacking them from the party.

But as he clocked in for the first time at the Sabah Works Ministry office here on Thursday (Jan 12), Shahelmey did his best to distance himself from lingering political talk and got down to work right away.

“I will start by getting briefings from the ministry and relevant departments for a better understanding of their functions,” he told reporters.

Asked if he was excited about his new role, he replied: “Of course. Plus, this new ministry is related to my academic background (engineering).

“I hope to work towards improving the services of this ministry for the people of Sabah,” he added.

Pressed about remarks by Bung Moktar that the appointment of the Sabah Umno dissidents in Hajiji’s Cabinet was not a representation of the party in the government, Shahelmey said the former was free to air his views.

“We will leave this to the central Umno leadership to handle.

“The Cabinet appointment is the prerogative of the Chief Minister according to the Sabah Constitution. How can he question this, from what angle?” he said.

Another Umno dissident, Datuk James Ratib, was also elevated to a full minister from his previous assistant minister’s position after replacing Shahelmey as the state Community Development and People’s Wellbeing Minister.

Meanwhile, Liew issued a statement hours after she was sworn in as the tourism minister on Wednesday (Jan 11) but noticeably stayed away from touching on anything that sounded political, saying she was just focused on tourism-related work.

Restored to her old portfolio that she served under the Warisan-led state administration from 2018 to 2020, the Api-Api assemblyman said her vision and mission for the ministry was to bring more tourists to Sabah.

She pointed out that she had already set appointments with her assistant minister, permanent secretary and other senior ministry officials.

“I look forward to a busy, exciting and challenging year for the tourism industry in Sabah,” she said.

Liew is scheduled to clock in for her first day at work at the ministry’s office at Wisma Tun Fuad Stephens here on Friday (Jan 13).

Phoong, the Luyang assemblyman, clocked in for duty at Wisma Kewangan here at 2pm on Thursday.

He was the youth and sports minister in Shafie’s Cabinet during Warisan’s rule in Sabah.

After the swearing-in on Wednesday, he told reporters that he only knew he was named to his present portfolio during the ceremony at the state Palace.

He said he was aware of the task in front of him, particularly with only limited time left until the current state Cabinet’s term ends in September 2025.

“This means I have to put in double the effort to ensure I can realise my mission and bring changes in the ministry and for Sabahans.

“I hope to get the help and support from everyone in the community regardless of race and religion,” Phoong said.