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2 June 2019

Warisan has over 200,000 registered members since its establishment in 2016, president Mohd Shafie Apdal said today.

Shafie, the Sabah chief minister, said the number is part of the applications approved by the party – with more than 50,000 applications still pending and in the process of being approved.

He said Warisan would come up with membership cards which would then be handed out to its registered members in the hope of strengthening the party.

“We will investigate in depth not only on the number of members we have, but the type of ‘value’ they add to the party,”.

“We want members who understand the party’s struggles. They should have good intentions in ensuring the stability of the government,” he told reporters after chairing the Warisan supreme council meeting in Kota Kinabalu today.

Shafie said the meeting lasted nearly three hours, discussing among others, the party’s approach in increasing its membership, besides determining its direction to empower, party especially after last year’s general election and the internal party election.

Warisan now has 26 divisions with more than 700 branches throughout Sabah. The number of branches is expected to increase, as the party had received a green light from the Registrar of Societies to set up another branch.

– Bernama

https://www.malaysiakini.com/news/478376

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17 May 2019

malaysiakini.com‏Verified account @malaysiakini

Sabah likely to be Umno’s biggest hurdle come GE15

Andrew Ong & Yasmin Ramlan  |  Published: 17 May 2019, 6:33 am  |  Modified: 17 May 2019, 6:33 am

In the run-up to the Sandakan by-election, much attention was placed on Sabah Umno chief Bung Moktar Radin’s promise to mobilise 9,700 Umno members to vote.

Given that Umno has been recovering some ground in Peninsular Malaysia of late, Bung Moktar’s pledge was not taken lightly, which was evident in Pakatan Harapan and their ally Warisan’s heavy campaigning in Muslim neighbourhoods.

Muslims make up the second largest demographic in Sandakan, after the 51 percent of Chinese voters.

Though Election Commission data does not classify voters according to religion, estimates by campaign workers suggest that Muslims make up 40 to 44 percent of the electorate.
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Since DAP candidate Vivian Wong received 74 percent of the vote on May 11, and the fact the turnout rate at the voting district level was mostly uniform – close to the overall rate of 54.44 percent – the logical conclusion is that a sizeable number of Muslims voted for Wong.

It should also be noted that two Muslim-majority voting districts won by BN during the last general election – Sim-Sim and Pulau Berhala – have turned in favour of Harapan.

It should also be noted that two Muslim-majority voting districts won by BN during the last general election – Sim-Sim and Pulau Berhala – have turned in favour of Harapan.

Ultimately, the result of the Sandakan polls suggests that Umno’s grip over Sabahan Muslims – their core demographic – has weakened.

No longer ‘fixed deposit’

Since 1994, Umno has dominated Sabah politics. In every election up until 2013, Sabah Umno candidates had a nearly 100 percent win rate, with their lawmakers making up half the state legislative assembly.

Umno leaders often regarded Sabah as their fixed deposit”, alluding to how the state was seen as a reliable support base.

All that changed in last year’s general election. A resurgent Sabah opposition, led by the charismatic Warisan president Mohd Shafie Apdal, reduced Umno’s seats in the state assembly to 17 from 32.
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As for parliamentary seats, some of Sabah Umno’s most prominent personalities, such as Salleh Said Keruak, Abdul Rahman Dahlan and Rosnah Shirlin, were vanquished by political novices.

In the months that followed, lawmakers began to desert Sabah Umno, which is now left with Bung Moktar as its solitary MP, and Musa Aman as its sole assemblyperson.

The Sandakan by-election eventually became Sabah Umno’s first test.
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Since the state chapter of Umno was established in the 1990s, Sabah has contributed a disproportionate number of MPs to the party.

Although just one of Umno’s 13 state/territory chapters, it contributed 12 to 17 percent of the party’s lawmakers until 2018.

Unless Umno is able to shape up its Sabah chapter within the next four years, the party will face difficulty in securing the numbers needed for it to get back into power.
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Prominent Sabah watchers, when contacted, generally believe that the Muslim vote swing in Sandakan can be attributed to satisfaction over the Warisan-led government in Sabah and Shafie’s leadership.

They also hold that Umno’s decision to grant its Sabah chapter autonomy – the ability to make policy decisions without having to consult the party headquarters in Kuala Lumpur – could be the key to its revival.

https://www.malaysiakini.com/news/476429

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13 May 2018

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malaysiakini.com‏Verified account @malaysiakini

Shafie Apdal is the lawful chief minister of Sabah

COMMENT | It has been three days since a momentous GE14, yet the storm in the Land Below the Wind has yet to subside. In the 60-member assembly, Sabah BN won 29 seats while Warisan and Pakatan Harapan combined also won 29 seats.

The 2 remaining seats were won by Star, led by Jeffrey Kitingan, thus becoming king-makers in Sabah.

In a dramatic turn of events, Star – which was initially opposition-aligned – joined Sabah BN to form the state government.

Despite the widespread anger, on May 10, Musa Aman was sworn-in as the Sabah chief minister. The state cabinet was appointed on May 11 and quite coincidentally, Jeffrey Kitingan was appointed a deputy chief minister.

Before Musa Aman has even warmed the chief minister’s seat, it was later confirmed that six Sabah BN assemblypersons had joined Warisan and Pakatan Harapan.

Such is the zero-sum game of politics – Shafie Apdal as the de facto head of Warisan and Pakatan Harapan had thereby obtained a comfortable 35 member-majority in the Sabah state assembly.

Yesterday, Shafie Apdal was sworn in as chief minister before the Yang di-Pertua Negeri Juhar Mahiruddin. Importantly, it was reported that the Yang di-Pertua Negeri had asked Musa Aman to resign beforehand.

To date, Musa Aman and his cabinet have not resigned from office.

To many people, Musa Aman has not been “officially” removed as chief minister and thus Shafie Apdal’s appointment is questionable. A constitutional puzzle of having two concurrent chief ministers befuddles the citizenry.

How do we resolve this? In this respect, Article 7(1) of the Sabah State Constitution is crucial and reads: “If the chief minister ceases to command the confidence of a majority of the members of the legislative assembly, then, unless at his request the Yang di-Pertua Negeri dissolves the assembly, the chief minister shall tender the resignation of the members of the cabinet.”

Two critical questions arise. Question 1: Can Musa Aman’s loss of confidence be determined by the Yang di-Pertua Negeri in his own judgment, or must it be done by a vote in the Sabah state legislative assembly?

Question 2: If the former can be done, and such a loss of confidence has been established and accepted by the Yang di-Pertua Negeri, can Musa Aman and his cabinet be deemed to have resigned with immediate effect, thus paving way for Shafie Apdal?
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Thus, to answer Question 1, the Yang di-Pertua Negeri is capable of determining himself that Musa Aman had lost the confidence of the majority – it need not be expressed by a vote in the Sabah state legislative assembly.

As for Question 2, the Federal Court in Nizar Jamaluddin held: “Similarly here, on the literal interpretation of Art. XVI(6), we are of the view that the word ‘shall’ should be given a mandatory effect. Therefore, it is incumbent upon the appellant in the circumstances of this case to tender the resignation of the executive council. The term Executive Council by definition includes the MB. (See art. XVI(2)).
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In short, once the Yang di-Pertua Negeri accepts in his own judgment that Musa Aman has lost the confidence of the majority, and has further asked him to resign, Musa Aman and his cabinet are legally deemed to have resigned with immediate effect.

As such, there was no chief minister and cabinet before Shafie Apdal’s appointment on May 12.

As night follows day, Shafie Apdal is therefore constitutionally and legitimately appointed as Sabah chief minister.

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LIM WEI JIET is an advocate and solicitor of the High Court of Malaya and deputy chair of the Bar Council’s constitutional law committee.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.

https://www.malaysiakini.com/news/424586

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8 May 2018

malaysiakini.com‏Verified account @malaysiakini

Bid to stop Shafie from contesting in GE14 dismissed

https://www.malaysiakini.com/news/423664

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29 April 2018

FMT News‏ @fmtoday

Heavyweights face off in hot seat Semporna

SEMPORNA: Two Sabah heavyweights, Shafie Apdal and Ramlee Marahaban, are vying for the hot parliamentary seat of Semporna, with both confident that they will be the voters’ choice on May 9.

Shafie is seeking a sixth term in the Muslim-majority seat in Sabah’s east coast. Against him is Ramlee, a former Umno comrade, who is assistant state finance minister.

They are joined by Abdul Nasir Abdul Raub (PAS) and Asmara Asmad of Parti Harapan Rakyat Sabah.

Ramlee, who is Sabah Umno deputy information chief, said the people of Semporna were mature enough to practise true democracy.

“We saw Semporna people’s support during the procession with BN’s candidates from the mosque to the community hall nomination centre,” he said. “The support from the people in blue shirts really convinced me of a win.”

Ramlee said the four-cornered contest would make it easier for BN to set their strategy.

However, Shafie said Sabah people, particularly those in Semporna, could judge for themselves and choose wisely. “Wherever in Sabah I went to give a talk, people would patiently wait without expecting anything,” he said.

Nevertheless, attendances at events were not a yardstick. “What matters is the votes,” he said.

http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2018/04/29/heavyweights-face-off-in-hot-seat-semporna/

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNcpc98uelE

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21 October 2017

Lim Kit Siang‏ @limkitsiang 16h16 hours ago

 

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10 October 2017

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As Warisan nears its first anniversary, some are interpreting the arrests of Shafie’s key men as a sign that the party is now seen as a threat. 

malaysiakini.com‏Verified account @malaysiakini

Alyaa Azhar

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malaysiakini.com‏Verified account @malaysiakini 4h4 hours ago

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21 August 2017

FMT News‏ @fmtoday

Police investigate post portraying Shafie Apdal as MACC detainee

KOTA KINABALU: Police are investigating a report made by Parti Warisan Sabah (Warisan) over an online article and an edited image portraying its president Shafie Apdal as a detainee of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).

In the police report, Sepanggar Youth chief Norazmi Alimat said a Facebook post on Saturday by a user named Hafizi Harris had falsely claimed that Shafie and vice-president Peter Anthony were arrested by the MACC.

The post allegedly shared an entry on www.masterdedah.com, also dated Saturday, which showed images apparently edited to show the duo dressed in the orange T-shirts usually worn by MACC suspects during court proceedings.

City police chief ACP Chandra Muthu, when contacted, said investigations had been commenced under Section 500 of the Penal Code for libel and under Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act for improper use of network facilities or services.

Chandra said police are in the process of identifying the owners of the Facebook and website accounts through the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission.

http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2017/08/21/police-investigate-post-portraying-shafie-apdal-as-macc-detainee/

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FMT News‏ @fmtoday

‘Warisan is hottest new party in Sabah’

 

KOTA KINABALU: Parti Warisan Sabah (Warisan) Youth chief Aziz Jamman said the party is the “hottest” new party in the state with members now numbering almost 100,000 as of last month.

Less than a year old, the fledgling party led by former federal minister Shafie Apdal has taken wing and is now soaring with its moves to recruit members, including organising roadshows across Sabah.

“We have distributed 500,000 membership application forms and as of the middle of May, our party membership is close to 100,000. So there are around 400,000 more forms to be returned,” Aziz told FMT.

Shafie was sacked from the cabinet in July 2015 and quit Umno in July 2016, before announcing that he would helm a new party in Sabah.

The Semporna MP declined to join PPBM, the federal-based party formed by sacked deputy prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin and former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, saying he preferred a Sabah-centric platform.

Warisan was unveiled last October, with a name change after Shafie took over an existing party and recruited several leaders from other opposition parties, including Darell Leiking of PKR and Junz Wong of DAP.

The four-party opposition coalition Gabungan Sabah (United Sabah Alliance) recently said it was unfazed by Warisan’s heavy recruitment but opened its arms for the lone opposition party to come into its fold to consolidate the opposition’s strengh to topple ruling coalition Barisan Nasional (BN) in the upcoming election.

http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2017/06/10/warisan-is-hottest-new-party-in-sabah/

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