Upko president Ewon Benedick formally tendered his resignation as entrepreneur development and cooperatives minister today, and will chair a special Upko Supreme Council meeting this evening.
In a Facebook post, Ewon said he would be using up his remaining leave days from today.
“This evening, I will chair a special Upko Supreme Council meeting to discuss the ‘Sabah First’ agenda, which has always been the basis of Upko’s struggle as enshrined in the party’s constitution,” he added.
Speculation is rife that Upko is set to leave the Pakatan Harapan coalition, which it joined in 2021.
Upko contested under the coalition’s banner in Sabah in the 2022 general election, where Ewon and his predecessor, Wilfred Madius Tangau, were elected the MPs for Penampang and Tuaran, respectively.
Upko was previously a component of Barisan Nasional but left the coalition after the 2018 general election to form the Sabah government with Warisan and PH.
Ewon previously said he was quitting the federal Cabinet in view of the stance by the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) on Sabah’s entitlement to 40% of federal revenue derived from the state.
He said the AGC’s position was inconsistent with Sabah’s rights as enshrined in the nation’s founding documents, namely the Cobbold Commission Report, Inter-Governmental Committee Report, Malaysia Agreement 1963 and Malaysia Act.
