NGO warns of potential challenges in seat negotiations
Published on: Tuesday, May 13, 2025
Published on: Tue, May 13, 2025 Text Size: Zulkarnain said a clash between GRS and BN at the 17th state election would be hard to avoid. Kota Kinabalu: An NGO warned of potential challenges in seat negotiations between Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) and Barisan Nasional (BN) following the attempted coup led by Sabah BN Chairman Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin against Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor. Sabah-based Gerakan Kuasa Rakyat Malaysia (G57) also said the State's ruling coalition was being continuously attacked by Umno, the BN lynchpin. 'Compounding matters is that Bung still heads Sabah Umno. Hence, a concrete decision in terms of seat negotiations between GRS and BN will be difficult to achieve,' G57 Chairman Datuk Zulkarnain Mahdar said in a statement. He said a clash between GRS and BN at the 17th state election would be hard to avoid. However, clashes between the coalitions should be perceived as 'friendly competition' as they are part of the same team at the federal level. He was commenting on the agreement between Pakatan Harapan (BH) Chairman Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and his BN counterpart Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi for the coalitions to work together in facing the Sabah state election. Top Sabah PH leaders have described the central leadership decision as a rational move, given the nature of the coalition's relationship at the federal level. Two years ago, Bung failed to overthrow Hajiji in a coup later dubbed the 'Kinabalu Move'. Last month, an analyst told FMT that an electoral pact in Sabah between BN and PH for the impending state election would be tricky, chiefly due to the presence of Bung. James Chin of Tasmania University said the Sabah BN Chairman represented the 'biggest problem' for the proposed alliance. * Follow us on Instagram and join our Telegram and/or WhatsApp channel(s) for the latest news you don't want to miss. * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available.
Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express's Telegram channel. Daily Express Malaysia
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Free Malaysia Today
6 hours ago
- Free Malaysia Today
Explain Fahmi Reza's travel ban, activist urges govt, cops
Wong Kueng Hui, director of the rights group Mandiri, called for the blacklist to be lifted immediately. PETALING JAYA : The government and the police were urged today to explain the travel ban imposed on satirical graphic artist and activist Fahmi Reza, who was prevented from taking a flight to Singapore this morning. Citizenship rights activist Wong Kueng Hui said Fahmi was barred from leaving the country on the orders of Bukit Aman (federal police headquarters) without any clear justification given. Fahmi was not a criminal but merely an artist who has been outspoken in criticising the government through his satirical artworks, said Wong, a Muda member who is coordinator of the Mandiri human rights organisation. He said in a statement: 'Mandiri stands in complete solidarity with Fahmi and calls for the blacklist to be lifted immediately and for the government to guarantee the people's right to freedom of movement, which is provided for under the law.' Wong, a Sabahan, was formerly declared stateless but finally received his MyKad in 2023 after 16 years of applying for Malaysian citizenship. He is active in championing the rights of stateless people. Earlier today, Fahmi said he was stopped by immigration officers before boarding a flight to Singapore, and informed that he was blacklisted. He said an immigration officer told him that the police had barred him from leaving the country. DAP Youth chief Woo Kah Leong also criticised the travel ban, saying it was uncalled for and would tarnish the reputation of the Madani government. Fahmi was denied entry into Sabah on May 29. He was arrested by Sabah police earlier this year in an investigation into one of his satirical works, depicting Sabah governor Musa Aman, which was later deemed to be seditious.
The Sun
6 hours ago
- The Sun
Kyiv rejects Russia's claims that Ukraine is delaying exchange of soldiers' bodies
KYIV: Russia's claims that Ukraine is delaying exchange of soldiers' bodies are untrue, Ukrainian officials said on Saturday, urging Moscow to stop 'playing dirty games' and return to constructive work. Kremlin aide Vladimir Medinsky said on Saturday that Ukraine had unexpectedly postponed exchanging prisoners of war and accepting the bodies of killed soldiers for an indefinite period. Russia and Ukraine held the second round of peace talks in Istanbul on Monday where they agreed to exchange more prisoners - focusing on the youngest and most severely wounded - and to return the bodies of 12,000 dead soldiers. 'Today's statements by the Russian side do not correspond to reality or to previous agreements on either the exchange of prisoners or the repatriation of bodies,' Ukraine's state-run Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War said on the Telegram messenger. It said that the agreement on the repatriation of the bodies had indeed been reached, but that no date had been agreed upon and that 'the Russian side had resorted to unilateral actions' that had not been agreed within the framework of the process. Medinsky said Russia had also handed over to Ukraine the first list of 640 prisoners of war, categorised as 'wounded, seriously ill and young people,' in order to begin the exchange. Ukraine, in turn, stated that it had also handed over the names for exchange, while Russia's lists did not correspond to the agreed approach as to which prisoners would be prioritised in the exchange.
The Sun
6 hours ago
- The Sun
Ukraine denies delaying POW, soldiers' body exchanges
KYIV: Russia's claims that Ukraine is delaying exchange of soldiers' bodies are untrue, Ukrainian officials said on Saturday, urging Moscow to stop 'playing dirty games' and return to constructive work. Kremlin aide Vladimir Medinsky said on Saturday that Ukraine had unexpectedly postponed exchanging prisoners of war and accepting the bodies of killed soldiers for an indefinite period. Russia and Ukraine held the second round of peace talks in Istanbul on Monday where they agreed to exchange more prisoners - focusing on the youngest and most severely wounded - and to return the bodies of 12,000 dead soldiers. 'Today's statements by the Russian side do not correspond to reality or to previous agreements on either the exchange of prisoners or the repatriation of bodies,' Ukraine's state-run Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War said on the Telegram messenger. It said that the agreement on the repatriation of the bodies had indeed been reached, but that no date had been agreed upon and that 'the Russian side had resorted to unilateral actions' that had not been agreed within the framework of the process. Medinsky said Russia had also handed over to Ukraine the first list of 640 prisoners of war, categorised as 'wounded, seriously ill and young people,' in order to begin the exchange. Ukraine, in turn, stated that it had also handed over the names for exchange, while Russia's lists did not correspond to the agreed approach as to which prisoners would be prioritised in the exchange.
