Gagasan Rakyat ‘a political force’

It is shaping up to be a dominant grassroots-based party in the GRS coalition

KOTA KINABALU: Fledgling Parti Gagasan Rakyat Sabah is set to shape itself as a dominant grassroots-based political force nearly a year after its leaders, led by Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor, quit Bersatu.

Hajiji’s Gagasan Rakyat will hold its inaugural annual general meeting here on Nov 13.

Hajiji, who led a nearly en bloc exodus from Sabah Bersatu close on the heels of Perikatan Nasional’s defeat in last year’s general election, has also survived a political coup attempt.

The party now boasts about 240,000 members in 73 divisions as well as another division formed in Labuan.

Hajiji is expecting the party to have 300,000 members by year end.

Gagasan Rakyat now forms the largest single party with 27 assemblymen in the 79-member state assembly.

Together with assemblymen from its seven-member coalition partners in Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) and other “friendly” assemblymen, Hajiji has mustered a convincing two-thirds majority and built up the party’s grassroots over the last 10 months to strengthen his party position.

“Gagasan Rakyat has steadily established itself as a grassroots party integral to the GRS coalition,” said political analyst Tony Paridi Bagang.

“By revealing its impressive membership count of 240,000 and continuous growth, it aspires to both gain public support and inspire confidence that it is evolving into a significant political force in Sabah,” he added.

Analysts expect the strengthened Gagasan Rakyat to pose a threat to former dominant parties like Parti Warisan led by Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal and Sabah Barisan Nasional led by Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin.

Both Warisan and Barisan at the state level are seen to be working informally together with Parti Kesejahteraan Demokratik Masyarakat led by Datuk Peter Anthony to mount a new “opposition” coalition against GRS.

However, neither Warisan nor Barisan has made any formal statement on a possible tie-up, although at the grassroots level, party leaders and members have been seen working together.

Still, Bagang pointed out that the dynamics of Sabah politics are difficult to predict, even if Gagasan Rakyat and GRS are seen to be in a strong position currently.

As such, he said things could change ahead of the next state election due by September 2025.

“With Sabah’s intricate political landscape in mind, the forthcoming elections will be a critical assessment of Gagasan Rakyat’s strength and its ability to maintain a harmonious relationship within the GRS coalition,” said Bagang, who is a senior lecturer with Sabah UiTM.

GRS forged a coalition with Sabah Pakatan Harapan after Sabah Umno withdrew its support for Hajiji in January this year in a failed bid to topple Hajiji.