James Chin, of Tasmania University, said the Sabah BN chairman represents the “biggest problem” to the mooted alliance.

“Many PH leaders have had a bad experience with Bung,” he told FMT, referring to a failed coup which Bung, then the deputy chief minister, led in a bid to oust Hajiji Noor from the top post in 2023.

“He is unpredictable,” Chin said of Bung.

Chin was commenting after Bung announced that Sabah BN will be cooperating with the state’s PH chapter for the Sabah polls, a collaboration he claimed was finalised last year.

Sabah DAP has since denied holding any talks to that end, while Sabah PKR information chief Razeef Rakimin said any cooperation between the two coalitions would leave PH “in a tight spot”.

Gabungan Rakyat Sabah, the state’s ruling coalition, and PH make up the state government, while BN sits with the opposition in the state assembly although five of its members have pledged their support for Hajiji.

Chin said PH would prefer to collaborate with Hajiji despite being aware of GRS’s long-term ambition of ousting all Malaya-based coalitions from the state.

That has left Sabah DAP “caught between a rock and hard place” in terms of who the party should align themselves with, he said.

“On one hand they want to distance themselves from GRS due to an alleged mining scandal, but at the same time they know their supporters don’t trust or like Bung.”

Both Oh Ei Sun, of the Singapore Institute of International Affairs, and Universiti Malaysia Sabah’s Bilcher Bala believe Bung’s announcement was aimed at pressuring PH into joining forces with BN.

Oh said the upcoming polls are anticipated to be a tight race and it remains unclear if PH would derive greater benefit from an alignment with GRS or BN.

“So, everybody has to come up with all sorts of tricks to hopefully get ahead.”

Bilcher said apart from trying to force through a partnership with PH and especially Sabah DAP, Bung was also trying to gauge reactions from the political landscape and the public.

It may also be an attempt to destabilise their rivals by creating confusion and uncertainty, he added.

“Bung’s premature announcement could indicate a willingness to use the media and public perception to his advantage, which might not align with the principles of trust and transparency necessary for a strong partnership,” said Bilcher.

Asked if a PH-BN collaboration would benefit both parties, Awang Azman Pawi of Universiti Malaya said there were no permanent enemies or friends in politics.

“What is permanent however, are their own vested interests.”