Masidi: Political stability key to realising Sabah's devt potential

Borneo Post

2 days ago

Datuk Seri Panglima Masidi Manjun
KOTA KINABALU (July 26): Political stability and continuity are essential if Sabah is to fully realise its development potential, said Parti Gagasan Rakyat Sabah (Gagasan Rakyat) Deputy President Datuk Seri Panglima Masidi Manjun.
Speaking after officiating the joint opening of Gagasan Rakyat's Women, Youth, and Beliawanis wings' annual general convention at the Sabah International Convention Centre (SICC) here today, Masidi said Sabah must move past political ego and instability to adopt a more mature, cohesive approach ahead of the 17th State Election.
'This is our need, to defend the achievements of the government that have been made so far,' he said.
'We often compare Sabah to Sarawak. But if we want to be like Sarawak, we must have the mindset and attitude of the Sarawakian people. Prioritise political stability. Prioritise continuity in the efforts that have been initiated,' he said.
'The problem with Sabah is that our government changes too often. We can see this clearly, while Sarawak is currently only on its sixth Premier, Sabah has already had 16 Chief Ministers.
'And when governments change too often, we lose time, time that should have been spent focusing on, first, solving Sabah's basic issues; and second, on continuing development,' said Masidi.
Masidi, a seasoned political leader and long-serving Cabinet minister, said the core message he wanted to convey was one of unity, love for the state, and a return to the founding values expressed in Sabah's state anthem, 'Sabah Tanah Airku'.
'That anthem reflects the foundation, objectives, and vision of Sabah as expressed by our earlier leaders and that vision is still relevant today,' he said.
When asked if now was the right time for all component parties to unite and focus on victory in the upcoming state election, Masidi responded firmly: 'Exactly.'
'Sometimes, the issue is that there's too much ego in our political system. Everyone wants to win, but not many actually want to work and dirty their hands,' he said.
He warned that Sabah's political culture must move away from the zero-sum mentality where one side's gain is automatically another's loss.
'Sabah politics should not be a zero-sum game. When one wins, everyone wins; when one loses, everyone loses. If we maintain this 'I must win and others must lose' attitude, Sabahans will never unite. We need to collaborate and look at the broader interest and continue to develop Sabah. We have great potential and abundant resources. But what we lack is the will to unite and the willingness to work hard,' he opined.
Asked whether Sabahans should rally under a single local party, as is the case in Sarawak, Masidi acknowledged it was an important issue.
'But for me, it's not just about the party. It is about the mindset behind each leader,' he said.
Quoting the state anthem again, Masidi pointed to the line 'merdeka sepanjang masa' not just physical independence, but also independence of thought.
'We must not be controlled by outsiders. I hope that our mindset is one that is formed by Sabahans themselves, not one shaped by outsiders,' he stressed.
On the proposal to limit the Chief Minister's term to two terms, Masidi welcomed the suggestion and revealed that the Cabinet had already discussed it.
Masidi said the idea was mooted as early as last year but lacked the necessary two-thirds support in the State Legislative Assembly to be tabled formally.
'We were not fully ready. Still, we all agreed that based on past experiences, two terms is probably the ideal length for a Chief Minister's tenure,' he said.
When asked if there had been discussions with the opposition to secure the needed support, Masidi confirmed that informal talks took place, but no firm commitments had emerged.
'And again, this is part of the problem. We focus too much on politics for the sake of politics, not on politics that delivers prosperity,' he said. development masidi manjun Parti Gagasan Rakyat Sabah political stability