Opposition's slogan has disunited Sabahans - political analyst
By Emin Madi
KOTA KINABALU, May 5 (Bernama) -- Barisan Nasional (BN) rather than the opposition is expected to be the choice for voters in Sabah on polling day, May 9.
This is because of the sturdy bond among BN's components compared to the shaky disposition of the opposition alliance, according to local political analyst Abdul Jalil Ghani.
"The opposition parties are engaged in a blame game which could cause racial and religious misunderstanding. But what you see among BN components is camaraderie," he told Bernama.
Abd Jalil, a Political Science graduate, also described opposition party, Warisan's slogan 'Sabah Ubah' (Change Sabah) as a political rhetoric to mislead the people.
He opined that Warisan had succeeded in disuniting the people with its Sabah Ubah bait.
"Sabah Ubah does not benefit the people for short or long term because it is inspired by people who want to change Sabah in their own interest, for vengeance and to satisfy their lust for power.
"Warisan president Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal is a former UMNO vice-president and was dropped in a cabinet reshuffle because he has no collective responsibility in government.
"For the sake of opposing BN, Warisan chose Sabah Ubah as its slogan simply because it wants to be different from Gabungan Sabah's slogan, Sabah untuk Rakyat Sabah," he said.
As to the question of change, Abdul Jalil said the people should be asked what more change did they want when Sabah was already stable and on the right track towards excellence and advancement.
Sabah under the BN government led by Chief Minister Tan Sri Musa Aman had already succeeded in stabilising the state economy, he said.
The level of poverty, he said, had dropped to 2.9 per cent, "the state of Sabah is developing very rapidly, while the harmony and well-being of the people are also steady."
On UMNO members who had defected to Warisan, Abdul Jalil said their action would not give any advantage to the latter.
"These people have had their glory days and are considered 'obsolete' in UMNO. They feel they could no longer compete with the rising next generation of leaders in UMNO.
"It also confirmed Shafie's desire to be in power again. Shafie is so desperate that he feels the present leaders in Warisan such as Darrel Leiking, Terence, Junz and Jaujan are not enough to make an impact," Abdul Jalil said.
Meanwhile, he dismissed claims by some quarters that the local Brunei community had been marginalised by BN.
He said the BN government could not be expected to meet every demand expressed by the numerous ethnic groups in the state.
As for the Brunei community, he said, many among them had occupied high position in civil service, statutory bodies and government-owned companies.
"In fact, two Bruneians have been appointed as Malaysian Ambassadors abroad," he said.
-- BERNAMA
