KOTA KINABALU: Sabah PKR chairman Datuk Mustapha Sakmud is now the Sabah Pakatan Harapan chairman, replacing Upko president Datuk Ewon Benedick, whose party pulled out of the national coalition days before the November Sabah election.
The three-party Sabah Pakatan coalition, which met Saturday (Feb 15), also filled vacant positions, naming Abdul Razak Jamil (PKR) as secretary and Zaidi Jatil (PKR) as youth chief while retaining Datuk Jenny Lasimbang as women’s chief.
Sabah DAP chairman Datuk Phoong Jin Zhe was retained as deputy chairman and state DAP’s vice chairman Datuk Chan Fong Hin was retained as treasurer in Sabah Pakatan.
Mustapha, who is Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department in charge of Sabah and Sarawak Affairs, said that they also reviewed various issues and lessons learned from the Nov 29 state elections.
“This reorganised leadership will now focus on preparation for the next General Election,” he told reporters after the meeting here.
Sabah Pakatan won only one seat through PKR while its component DAP was wiped out in the election.
Mustapha said that the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) and the state’s right for the return of 40% federal revenue will be the priority, as reflected in the aspirations of Sabahans.
“Party leaders voiced concern that the issue must be resolved according to the timeline set by the Kota Kinabalu High Court.
“As Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department tasked with MA63 implementation, I will bring these concerns to the technical committee and Cabinet,” Mustapha said.
He said that the technical committee meeting involving federal, Sabah and Sarawak government representatives was scheduled for Feb 23 and would be chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Amar Fadillah Yusuf.
