Why not a leader from East Malaysia? Shafie asks

Given the ongoing political impasse within the opposition coalition, Warisan President Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal believes it may be time for the country to have its first prime minister candidate from East Malaysia.

“I am not saying that it must be me, but it is indeed important (to have) a change,” the former Sabah chief minister told BFM this morning.

Shafie stressed that it is “very timely and crucial” for both Peninsular and East Malaysia to be equal partners, in order to move forward as a nation.

“We can’t be relying on the current ruling government. We have seen how the budget was formulated and drafted. It is not made to foster the nation’s growth. People are already suffering in (large) numbers. So where can the country go, moving forward?” he asked.

Shafie had said previously that his name was first proposed by both the Democratic Action Party (DAP) as well as Amanah, with Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad backing the move. DAP and Amanah have since wavered in their position as the coalition struggled to agree on a candidate.

The 62-year-old started his political career as a member of Barisan Nasional (BN), before setting up his own Sabah-based party when former prime minister Datuk Seri Mohd Najib Razak dropped him from cabinet in 2015, amid a dispute over troubled state fund 1MDB.

Shafie was also responsible for breaking BN’s longtime hold on Sabah during the 14th General Election, resulting in his appointment as chief minister of the state. Shafie held on to Sabah for five months after Perikatan Nasional came to power in February, until the Sabah Yang di-Pertua Negeri, Juhar Mahiruddin, announced the dissolution of the Sabah State Legislative Assembly on July 30.

“I have been serving the country for the last 30 over years, I was one of the Vice Presidents of UMNO and I have been receiving support not only from seven states, but I am not saying it must be me.

“We can’t realise independence without the alliance of East Malaysia. Changes don’t mean they need to be divided, in fact we must strengthen the opposition. There are formidable young leaders within the opposition that can offer themselves to the country. I have been with them for a number of years, yet they don’t have the opportunity to surface as leaders,” Shafie said.

When asked who he sees as a potential leader for Pakatan Harapan, Shafie named several whom he believed would be able to serve the nation well, including Muar MP Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman and other young leaders within PKR and DAP.

“I think it is time for us to move forward,” Shafie emphasised.

On Warisan’s future political alignment now that it has decided to expand to Peninsular Malaysia, he told BFM that the party will position itself with all opposition leaders, including the likes of Dr. Mahathir and Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

“It is indeed very important to us to not only expand to Peninsula but to grow as a party in order to contribute in building the nation. We can’t just be sitting by ourselves in Sabah,” he noted.