Shafie: Warisan emerges as largest single bloc, thanks Chinese community for clean sweep

KOTA KINABALU (Nov 30): Parti Warisan’s (Warisan) emergence as the largest single party in the Sabah election with more than 25 per cent of the popular vote reflects a strong mandate from the people, said party president Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal.

Shafie stressed that this was achieved despite the party’s limited resources and what he described as “the rampant use of money politics”.

“We are the biggest single bloc with more than 25 per cent of the votes. Almost 300,000 Sabahans supported us.

“This shows the trust that the people have given us even though we did not have the financial strength others had,” he told a press conference at the Warisan office in Kolombong on Sunday.

Shafie also thanked the Chinese community for delivering Warisan a clean sweep in Chinese majority seats.

“I really appreciate the Chinese voters. They voted based on values, integrity and leadership, not because of money or pressure. Their trust will not be taken lightly,” he said.

Looking ahead, he said Sabah’s voice must be amplified at the national level, with Parliament expected to be dissolved within two years.

“Our voice must not only be heard in Sabah but throughout the country,” he said, adding that Warisan would continue to push for Sabah-based leadership and strong representation on issues of governance, rights and development.

Despite Warisan’s improved performance, Shafie admitted he was not fully satisfied with the overall results due to money politics.

“We are not satisfied because the use of money was so widespread. Many people were driven by financial offers and it divided communities. This is not good for democracy,” he said.

He reiterated that Warisan’s priority now is to honour the mandate given by voters.

“We will uphold clean and principled leadership. We will not let the trust placed in us fade.

“We will continue the struggle and prepare for the coming parliamentary election,” he said.

Shafie added that Warisan’s performance in both the seats it won and lost offered important lessons that will shape the party’s next steps.

He noted that Warisan had only 14 seats after defections in the previous term but managed to grow that number to 25.

“From 14 we increased to 25. That is not an easy task.

“It shows that the voices of the urban areas are now more pronounced than before,” he said.

Shafie said the party will study the trends carefully but will not publicly spell out its strategy.

“I am quite sure we can strengthen the way forward for us, but I do not want to spell out how we are going to do that,” he said.

He added that regeneration of leadership will be a key priority in the coming term.

“We must ensure we bring up more young leaders so that the next generation of Sabahans can have a better life,” he said.

Warisan secured a total of 288,703 votes or 59.29 per cent of the ballots cast, followed by Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) with 286,389 votes (58.81 per cent) and Barisan Nasional (BN) with 144,584 votes (29.69 per cent).

The party also swept seven wins in seats contested by Democratic Action Party (DAP).

DAP Sabah chairman Datuk Phoong Jin Zhe, who moved from his former Luyang constituency to contest in Likas, was defeated by Warisan’s Tham Yun Fook.

In Luyang, Chan Loong Wei lost to Warisan’s Samuel Wong.

In Kapayan, Jannie Lasimbang was unseated by Warisan’s Chin Tek Ming, while Kota Kinabalu MP Datuk Chan Foong Hin failed to wrest Tanjung Aru from Warisan’s Datuk Junz Wong.

Warisan’s Calvin Chong beat Vivian Wong in Elopura, and in Sri Tanjong, Philip Yap was defeated by Warisan’s Justin Wong.

As for Tanjong Papat, Warisan’s Alex Thien emerged victorious against Parti Kesejahteraan Demokratik Masyarakat’s (KDM) Datuk Frankie Poon Ming Fung.