Shafie (seated, second right) in a group photo with the Warisan leaders. -Bernama photo
KOTA KINABALU: Parti Warisan Sabah (Warisan) president Datuk Seri Panglima Shafie Apdal is confident of securing a bigger victory in the upcoming snap state election.
“God willing, I am confident we will be stronger after this election,” the caretaker chief minister said to reporters after meeting with Warisan’s Supreme Council and division chiefs here yesterday.
The purpose of the meeting was to explain the reason for the dissolution of the State Legislative Assembly and instruct the Warisan divisions to nominate candidates for the state election.
Warisan won 21 out of the 45 state seats it contested in the 14th General Election (GE14), whereas Pakatan Harapan (PH) secured eight state seats – six by Democratic Action Party (DAP) and two by Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) – giving a total of 29 seats.
Meanwhile, United Progressive Kinabalu Organization (Upko) won five states seats under the Barisan Nasional (BN) ticket, but the party later teamed up with Warisan and PH to form the state government.
When asked if he had a target on the number of seats the Warisan might win, Shafie said he would not disclose the figure.
“The important thing is that we form the state government.
“We cannot be too arrogant. It is up to the people in Sabah to decide.
“As a local party, we seek the cooperation of all Sabahans to vote for Warisan,” he said.
On whether Warisan would field its members of parliament (MPs) in the state election, Shafie said he would make an announcement when the time came.
He stressed that the first criteria for its candidates were their winnability.
On seat distribution, he said the basic principle was that Warisan, Upko, DAP and PKR would defend the state seats they contested in the 14th general election.
Shafie said he had asked for the nominated candidates to be tabled for discussion, not only among Warisan but also its political allies to ensure the candidates were winnable and loyal.
He believed that the cooperation between Warisan, DAP, PKR, Upko and Parti Amanah Negara (Amanah) would give the pact strength in the state election.
He was also confident that Sabahans were smart enough to know who they wanted to lead the state.
“I believe the people know who they want to select to govern Sabah, whether it is (Tan Sri) Musa Aman, (Datuk Seri) Anifah Aman, (Datuk Seri) Bung Moktar Radin or Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal.”