KOTA KINABALU: Former Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Dr. Salleh Said Keruak said a chief minister becoming Yang di-Pertua (TYT) Negeri in the state is not unusual, as there are four politicians who have achieved the distinction.
The Usukan assemblyman said there were even two Sabahans who from TYT became Sabah chief ministers.
“We have such a unique history. It shows that Sabah sought stability,“ said Salleh after greeting Tun Musa Aman at the Kota Kinabalu International Airport today.
Musa returned to Sabah after the former Chief Minister received the instrument of appointment as Sabah Governor from the King of Malaysia, His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim.
Musa, 73, the longest-serving Sabah chief minister, is set to be the 11th Sabah Yang di-Pertua (TYT) Negeri.
The first TYT of Sabah, Tun Mustapha Harun, became chief minister in 1967.
Sabah’s first Chief Minister, Tun Fuad Stephens, became TYT in 1973. When Stephens stepped down as TYT, he joined politics, and his party won the Sabah polls in 1976 and he became Chief Minister for the second time.
Sabah’s fourth Chief Minister, Tun Mohammad Said Keruak, became the seventh TYT in 1987.
Tun Sakaran Dandai, who was elected Chief Minister in 1994, was appointed as TYT a year later.
When asked whether Musa’s appointment will bring stability to Sabah, which has been rocked by secretly filmed videos, Salleh, who is also Umno Sabah’s treasurer, said the former chief minister will bring his vast administrative experience and steady the political fluidity in the state.
Salleh said Sabahans should rally behind Musa, who will become TYT after Tun Juhar Mahiruddin’s term as the 10th Sabah TYT ends on Dec 31.
