Jeffrey Kitingan giving his speech when officiating the party’s first Luyang branch office.
KOTA KINABALU: Sabah's state seats, rights and powers would be managed and wielded better by local parties and leaders than those from the peninsula, says Sabah STAR president Datuk Seri Dr Jeffrey Kitingan.
"Under the Federal Constitution, in Parliament, there is already an agreed number of seats for each state and territory so why do they (peninsula-based parties) want to come here and grab ours?” the Deputy Chief Minister asked when officiating the party’s first Luyang division office near here on Friday (March 21).
Furthermore, he added, local parties were better positioned to increase Sabahans' awareness of their rights as enshrined in the Federal Constitution and the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63).
The Luyang state seat, which is predominantly Chinese, is currently held by DAP’s Datuk Phoong Jin Zhe.
Asked if opening this office would disrupt the working dynamics among parties in the Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS)-Pakatan Harapan alliance, Kitingan said two seat allocation formulas had been proposed but not yet decided on.
For the first option, it is to let GRS contest all state seats and for the second, it is GRS Plus (including its allies and supporters), he said, adding that the seat arrangements and formula will be discussed jointly after Hari Raya.
He said Sabah STAR had considered opening up more divisions and offices earlier but put the plan on hold as it did not want to disturb other coalition partners or allies.
“Owing to increased demand... for us to open up divisions, we have decided to do it (open the Luyang office) now,” he said, adding that the party is planning further expansions.
He said there is an increasing level of awareness concerning state rights among the Chinese, natives and non-native communities in Sabah.
“We want everyone to know about MA63 and other state rights under the Federal Constitution because then we can push for our rights and get them back faster,” Kitingan said.
During the opening of the Luyang office, party deputy president Datuk Kenny Chua said it was time to give local parties the chance to contest and handle the governance of the state.
“Thank you to peninsula-based parties for the work done for us all this while but now it is time to... allow local parties to shine,” he said.
He added that Sabahans can do the job of governing the state and bear the responsibility well.
The 17th Sabah State Election is due later this year.
