KOTA KINABALU: The Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) has officially withdrawn from the national Opposition Perikatan Nasional coalition, ending its controversial decision to sit as a member in two opposing coalitions.
SAPP president Datuk Seri Yong Teck Lee (pic) said that SAPP has officially withdrawn from Perikatan last month following a decision made by the supreme council meeting on Nov 23.
"Perikatan headquarters was officially informed of this decision last month," said Yong, whose SAPP is also part of the state's ruling Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) coalition, which is part of the national unity government.
Yong said that their decision was because it had become clear that Perikatan wants to contest in the upcoming Sabah election.
"This position contradicts SAPP’s long-standing stand and policy that all 73 state constituencies should only be contested by local Sabah parties.
"This SAPP stand is consistent with MA63 and autonomy for Sabah. We cannot compromise on our commitment to ensuring that the elections for the Sabah legislative assembly remain exclusively under the purview of local parties, free from interference by national-based parties from peninsular Malaysia," he said in a statement Saturday (Dec 14).
Yong said Perikatan's insistence on fielding candidates from national-based parties in the Sabah elections directly contradicted SAPP's fundamental principle.
Yong said that GRS, a coalition of all local parties, led by Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor, wanted to contest all 73 seats in the coming state election.
"In fact, one of the key motions we have submitted to the GRS supreme council to deliberate is Sabah's autonomy, which means GRS should field candidates in all 73 state constituencies.
"This is important in upholding Sabah’s rights under the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) and reflects the fervent aspirations of Sabahans for a government that embraces true federalism," he added.
