Bung Moktar (middle), seen here arriving for the Beaufort Umno division meeting on July 13, says any potential polls pact partners must be willing to work for the benefit of Sabah.
KOTA KINABALU: Sabah Umno will finalise terms with parties seeking to cooperate with it before the coming state election to avoid old wounds bleeding again, says Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin.
The state Umno chief said the party had learned well from its experience of only negotiating after winning the election.
He said it had also been taught to choose its partners carefully.
“We have gone through it before – making a deal after the last state election to form a government,” he said in a statement on Tuesday (July 16).
“But after forming the government, Umno was sidelined, although we obtained more seats compared to other parties.
“So the experience must be made a lesson and any cooperation with other parties must be made before the election,” said the former deputy chief minister.
It is believed the Kinabatangan MP was referring to the snap state election in 2020 in which Barisan Nasional, working with a then-loose Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) coalition, toppled the Parti Warisan-led government.
Bung Moktar contended that no single party can go into the next state polls as a dominant outfit without working with others to form the next government.
As such, he said, Sabah Umno will only work with parties that will respect their partners in the hoped-for alliance, as well as those that would benefit the state.
“We will also look at friends who have loyalty and honesty in carrying out the obligation in the alliance to fight for the welfare of Sabahans.
“We do not want another internal crisis that will undermine efforts to develop Sabah,” said the Lamag assemblyman.
Bung Moktar, who is also Sabah Barisan chief, said whichever party they decide to work with must contribute to Umno’s victory in the election.
