By Daniel John Jambun
President, Change Advocate Movement of Sabah (CAMOS)
KOTA KINABALU: The Change Advocate Movement of Sabah (CAMOS) condemns the arrogant statement by Lahad Datu UMNO Chief Sharif Musa Sharif Mabul, who declared that UMNO is a “kingmaker” in the new Sabah government.
But let us be brutally honest: UMNO can only behave this way because Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor handed them the power on a silver platter.
1. Hajiji threw away a rock-solid 65-seat Sabah-only government
The people delivered an unmistakable mandate for local parties:
GRS – 29
Warisan – 25
UPKO – 3
STAR – 2
PKDM – 1
Independents – 5
This was a 65-seat Sabah coalition — stable, legitimate, and free from outside interference.
Hajiji rejected this option.
Instead of embracing Sabah unity, he chose to revive Peninsular control by bringing in BN–UMNO — a party Sabahans had overwhelmingly rejected.
This was not a necessity.
This was not forced.
This was Hajiji’s choice.
2. UMNO is acting like a kingmaker because Hajiji empowered them
With only six seats, UMNO had no bargaining power.
No mandate.
No legitimacy.
Yet today UMNO dares to:
call itself the “anchor of stability”;
threaten that their “roots can hurt”;
claim they can form government with “anyone they choose”.
This insolence is possible only because the Chief Minister chose dependence over strength, and Peninsular loyalty over a Sabah mandate.
3. This is a repeat of Sabah’s darkest political history
The events unfolding today echo the very pattern that destroyed Sabah in the past:
1994 — Peninsular parties toppled the PBS government through engineered defections.
1994–2020 — Sabah suffered 26 years of political manipulation, instability, and loss of autonomy.
2020 — another collapse orchestrated through external influence.
Every time Sabah relies on West Malaysian parties, we pay the price in instability, humiliation, and loss of self-determination.
Hajiji’s decision puts Sabah back on that same dangerous path.
4. This decision weakens Sabah’s MA63 struggle
Hajiji cannot claim to fight for MA63 while simultaneously making his government dependent on Peninsular parties.
MA63 requires:
political autonomy,
a united Sabah voice,
independence from federal party control,
the ability to negotiate as an equal partner.
By choosing BN–UMNO over a unified Sabah coalition, Hajiji has:
weakened Sabah’s bargaining power,
undermined Sabah’s equality under MA63,
surrendered political leverage,
allowed external parties to influence Sabah’s internal affairs.
This is a direct betrayal of the spirit of MA63.
5. The central question remains: What is Hajiji afraid of?
Why did the Chief Minister fear a 65-seat Sabah-born government?
Why choose six seats from a rejected Peninsular party over a sweeping Sabah mandate?
Why surrender Sabah’s autonomy so quickly?
Only Hajiji knows the real reasons behind this political retreat.
But the consequences are now borne by Sabahans.
6. Sabahans deserve a government grounded in Sabah unity, not Peninsular dependence
Sabah has the capacity, the leaders, and the numbers to govern itself responsibly.
Yet today, Sabah is once again placed under the shadow of Peninsular interference — not because of voter demand, but because of one man’s political preference.
CAMOS insists:
Sabah must never again be hostage to Peninsular power brokers.
Sabah’s future must be built on Sabah’s mandate, not Peninsular influence.
The Chief Minister must answer for choices that jeopardise Sabah’s stability and autonomy.
UMNO’s “kingmaker” arrogance is not the main issue.
The real issue is why Hajiji allowed it to happen when Sabah had a 65-seat local coalition waiting to form a strong and independent government.
Sabahans deserve clarity, accountability, and leadership that puts Sabah first — not a government that revives the very patterns of domination Sabah has spent decades trying to escape.
CAMOS will continue to defend Sabah’s autonomy and expose any political move that threatens the stability and dignity of our state.
