PPBM said helping Warisan in the by-election campaign would show that PPBM was not out to undermine the ruling party, which had initially questioned PPBM’s arrival.
“Kimanis is the stepping stone for everybody to reconcile and our agenda is very clear, which is to make sure the Warisan candidate wins, and wins big at that,” said Sabah PPBM information chief Khairul Firdaus Akhbar Khan.
He said there has been distrust between Warisan and PPBM members in Sabah due to a perception that the peninsula-based party has the support of former chief minister Musa Aman.
“This is not true, they are all just rumours,” Khairul told reporters last night.
He said when PPBM chairman Dr Mahathir Mohamad gave the greenlight for the party to set up shop in Sabah, he had laid down several conditions.
“The first condition imposed on us by Tun was to assist Chief Minister Shafie Apdal, to be the bridge between the federal and the state.
“The PM gave very specific instructions that Shafie is the CM and that we must work together with him to ensure all plans and directions of the state are implemented,” he said.
Mahathir launched PPBM’s Sabah chapter on Apr 6, months after an exodus in Sabah Umno.
Relations between Warisan and PPBM have been strained ever since. This was fuelled by statements by state PPBM leaders questioning the state government’s move to issue the Sabah Temporary Pass (PSS) to foreigners, as well as attempts to lobby Pakatan Harapan to choose a PPBM candidate in Kimanis.
Khairul said the open criticism was better than keeping silent over government policies as was done by Umno in the past.
“At the end of the day, what has been decided by the leadership or the CM, we have to support.”
Khairul also rubbished a rumour that PPBM would sabotage Warisan’s chances at the Kimanis by-election.
“These are just wild accusations. In fact, we are so eager to go to Kimanis and help Warisan.”
He said it was natural that many PPBM members in Sabah who were previously in Umno were not comfortable working with Warisan.
“In the last elections, we were against them, so it’s not easy to quickly accept the situation now,” Khairul said.
Khairul admitted that members were not happy that PPBM senior leaders were not given positions in the state.
But he said it was too early to make such a demand.
“Sooner or later, I believe, we will get a place in the government. Just give the CM some time to run the state.
“We have only been part of the government for not more than a year now,” he said.