PARTI Bersatu Sabah (PBS) president Maximus Ongkili has quashed talks that his party is teaming up with opposition Parti Warisan Sabah.

In a statement yesterday, Ongkili said he had instead asked Warisan to become a member or partner of Perikatan Nasional (PN) when its president Shafie Apdal “extended the hand of friendship and cooperation during the season of Ramadan”.

In a state where party hopping is a way of political life and any overtures to the opposition treated with suspicion, Ongkili yesterday also said he personally assured Chief Minister Hajiji Noor that his recent statement to express the party’s openness to Warisan “was misread and purposely twisted to create confusion among the people”.

“My actual intention was to express the party’s openness to the opposition, especially Parti Warisan, to cooperate with the state and federal governments to achieve our common development goals for the good of Sabah and Sabahans.

“I did not say more than to express the openness to cooperation.”

He said, as a backbone of the Sabah government, there is no reason for PBS to waver  because the strength and unity in the Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) and PBS support is undivided.

The assurance was given when Ongkili and Hajiji met during a two-hour Raya courtesy call in Kota Kinabalu on Wednesday.

Ongkili was accompanied by his three deputies, Radin Malleh, Jahid Jahim and Dr Yee Moh Chai, vice-president Dr Joachim Gunsalam and secretary-general Joniston Bangkuai.

“During the courtesy call, our discussions touched on many issues concerning GRS, matters of state government and administration, especially on Covid-19 and economy.

“We also assured him that PBS will give full support to the Chief Minister’s leadership, and that the party machinery will give full cooperation to the implementation of the Sabah Maju Jaya development and strategies,” said Ongkili, who is Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Sabah and Sarawak Affairs).

In his earlier statement on Warisan, Ongkili explained that he did not say more than to express the openness to cooperation.

“After all, it was Warisan who extended the hand of friendship and cooperation in the first place, and their president (Shafie Apdal) did it during the season of Ramadan, a season to make friends.

“So it is only proper for us to express a similar gesture for the sake of friendship,” he said.

He added that it is only through cooperation, political friendship and support that the state could be fully developed.

“It does not necessarily mean that we have to form a coalition, or alliance. PBS’ intention was to extend friendship and cooperation with Warisan at the Perikatan Nasional level.” – May 21, 2021.