KOTA KINABALU: Sabah UMNO is open to collaborating with any political party, including Warisan, during the upcoming 17th State Election (PRN17), recognising the challenges that come with contesting independently.
However, Sabah UMNO chief Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin said the party has not yet reached a decision regarding the potential alliance with other political parties.
Bung Moktar said UMNO Sabah needs to carefully evaluate the potential allies who express interest in working together.
“While we have not reached a final and detailed decision, I consistently stress the importance of cooperation because a single party cannot achieve absolute victory on its own.
“Therefore, we must seek partners for the upcoming PRN. However, we must conduct thorough evaluations and analyses beforehand. Making the wrong choice could have long-lasting consequences, resulting in losses for five or even ten years,” he told reporters after the Sabh UMNP Breaking Fast event held last night.
Bung Moktar, who also serves as the Member of Parliament for Kinabatangan, highlighted the importance of avoiding past mistakes made by UMNO Sabah.
In PRN17, UMNO Sabah’s primary focus will be on contesting seats that have a high likelihood of victory.
“While we have yet to make a final decision, it is unlikely that we will compete in seats with a majority Chinese population. We will make a final determination at a later time,” Bung Moktar explained.
He further said that UMNO Sabah will assess the areas that were previously their traditional strongholds but were relinquished to other parties in the previous state election.
“If there is still a chance of winning in those seats, UMNO Sabah will contest them once again,” he added.
“There was a period when we loaned seats to other parties. Therefore, we will carefully evaluate the situation, and if there is a viable opportunity to win in those seats, we will contest them,” Bung Moktar added.
