KOTA KINABALU: Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) leaders were consulted in the decision to collaborate with Pakatan Harapan in the upcoming Sabah elections, according to Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor (pic).
“We have discussed with all the presidents of the parties,” he said, dismissing assumptions that the decision was unilateral, as some leaders were surprised by his announcement of the pact being finalised.
He was asked whether the decision to work with Pakatan was his own and one-sided, to which he stressed that he had met with the presidents of the parties in the eight-party GRS coalition prior to the announcement during the Parti Gagasan Rakyat Sabah (Gagasan Rakyat) on Sunday.
Earlier, Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) president Datuk Seri Yong Teck Lee, whose party is keen for GRS to go solo, said that GRS had not met to endorse any decision for the pact with Pakatan.
Hajiji noted that there is a lot of politicking going on in Sabah at the moment, and it was best not to listen to everything being said or circulated outside.
As to whether and when the supreme council will be meeting, he confirmed it would happen but declined to give a date.
“I will call and inform you later. I cannot tell you now because we don’t have a date yet,” he added.
On other issues, Hajiji, who recently returned from Jakarta with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, mentioned that the meeting between Malaysia and Jakarta touched on issues relating to Sabah, among other things.
“We have stated the state government’s stand on issues concerning us and the outcome was very positive,” he said without further elaboration.
All he could say is that issues relating to Sabah were being fine-tuned and good things were in place for the state.
As to the long-standing maritime boundary claim involving Ambalat with the Indonesian government, Hajiji said these were discussed based on international laws, indicating it was a separate matter.
