Let's wait and see', says renegade Umno rep Shahelmey after facing party discipline board for backing Hajiji

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah Umno's Tanjung Keramat assemblyman Datuk Shahelmey Yahya, who broke party ranks to back Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor during the Jan 6 bid by Sabah Barisan-Umno to topple the government, has explained his reasons to Umno disciplinary board.

Shahelmey, who was also Putatan MP and Deputy Chief Minister, said that he would now leave it to the party's disciplinary board to decide on the issue against him.

"Yes, I am one of the Sabah Umno assemblymen who was called by the Umno Disciplinary Board on (Feb 25) to make a defence against the charges that have been stated.

"We leave it to them to decide. They will make an official decision, I can't say anything before they decide, we wait," he told reporters after a unity carnival in Putatan near here Saturday (Feb 25).

Shahelmey were among four Sabah Umno assemblymen who were issued letters to face the disciplinary board to explain the reason for not following the Sabah Barisan-Umno decision to pull out its support for the GRS government led by Hajiji.

Apart from Shahelmey, the other renegades issued the show cause letters were Community Development and People Well-being Minister Datuk James Ratib (Sugut), Datuk Jasnih Daya (Pantai Dalit) and Datuk Hamid Awang (Balung).

However, James, Jasnih and Hamid quit Umno earlier this week along with a fourth assemblyman, Datuk Arshad Bistari (Tempasuk) to join Parti Gagasan Rakyat Sabah (Gagasan Rakyat) led by Hajiji.

Shahelmey stayed on in Umno amid concerns that he might be subjected to the anti-hopping law that would see his Putatan parliament seat vacated.

On the move by the four other assemblymen to join Gagasan Rakyat, Shahelmey said that it was their own respective decisions to leave the party.

"I believe that their action was made based on the realisation that there was a need for political stability in the state.

"It is to allow for the state administration to run smoothly and various development agencies under the Sabah Maju Jaya (SMJ) roadmap is achieved," he added.