Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg
KUCHING: Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg has ticked off Pakatan Harapan (PH) for their constant jostling over the Prime Minister’s post, saying that having a stable federal government is far more important than arguing over who gets to be premier.
He said with the country having to revive its economy post-Covid-19, Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) was determined to provide stability at federal level during this very challenging period.
“Why are they (PH) so busy about (who) becoming the prime minister? As far as we (GPS) are concerned, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin is already there as our Prime Minister.
“To me, the post of prime minister is secondary,” he told reporters after officiating at the earth-breaking ceremony for the proposed Jalan Sungai Maong-Segedup project here yesterday.
Abang Johari, who is GPS chairman, was asked whether he had been contacted by the opposition and offered the Prime Minister’s post.
This was after reports that former premier Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad had endorsed Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal as prime minister, should PH wrest back the control over Putrajaya.
Dr Mahathir claimed that the decision to nominate Mohd Shafie as prime minister-designate was made collectively by leaders from Parti Warisan Sabah, Democratic Action Party (DAP) and Parti Amanah Negara during an informal meeting last Thursday.
Representatives from Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) did not attend the meeting, which had also proposed PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim as Deputy Prime Minister I, and Dr Mahathir’s son Datuk Seri Mukhriz as Deputy Prime Minister II.
Anwar himself subsequently issued a statement with regard to the proposal made during the meeting, calling upon the people to reject ‘politics of deception’.