Sabah state election: BN-PH Sabah cooperation expected to be finalised tonight
One of the key matters to be discussed included a proposal to establish an MoU between the parties collaborating in the upcoming state election.
SHAH ALAM – The Umno Supreme Council (MKT) meeting scheduled for tonight (Wednesday) is expected to finalise the strategic cooperation between the party and Pakatan Harapan (PH) in preparation for the 17th Sabah state election.
According to an internal Umno source, one of the key matters to be discussed included a proposal to establish an official memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the parties collaborating in the upcoming state election.
"Everything will be finalised tonight — the wishlist, the form of cooperation and the MoU. The main issues have been presented to the party’s top leadership and an announcement will be made by the Supreme Council," the source told Sinar.
The source said the MoU was seen as crucial to prevent a recurrence of party-hopping incidents that had previously left Umno Sabah nearly paralysed.
"There is already a preliminary understanding for this cooperation. There will be no overlap between BN and PH and in fact, PH has agreed to the seat distribution. BN will contest 40 seats and the rest will go to PH," the source added.
In April, Sabah Barisan Nasional (BN) chairman Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin confirmed that cooperation between BN and PH in the state had been finalised during a party retreat at the state level at the end of last year.
Commenting further on the need for an MoU, the source said although the Anti-Party Hopping Act was enforced in 2022, there were still loopholes that allowed elected representatives to defect.
"This political cooperation must be built on a strong foundation. Otherwise, we risk repeating past events, where coalition partners who won under a particular party’s ticket switched sides and supported the opposition, thereby undermining stability," the source said.
The source also emphasised that in the context of coalitions such as BN and PH, the Anti-Party Hopping Act did not directly apply to the coalition itself, but rather to the party under which a candidate contested.
"Therefore, the MoU serves as a safer and more preventive measure to ensure political stability in Sabah," the source said.
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