KUCHING: Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg’s decision to cooperate with Perikatan Nasional (PN) stems from a previous cooperation.
They have worked together as a coalition before, after the Sheraton Move, to form the federal government, said political analyst Professor Dr Novel Lydon.
He noted that the Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) and PN are far more comfortable with one another than GPS with Pakatan Harapan (PH).
“I think the Sarawak Premier chose to form a federal government with the PN because they have worked before as a coalition.
“They know each other very well, and they are very comfortable compared with PH,” he said to New Sarawak Tribune.
As such, he said, the lack of seats needed to form a government has led to the decision to also work with Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS).
“As you know, before the establishment of GPS, they were from Barisan Nasional (BN). At the same time, this coalition is very Malaysian-centric and conservative,” he explained.
When asked about Abang Johari’s statement that he had chosen to collaborate with BN, Dr. Novel noted that BN is a relatively moderate party.
“If you consider BN’s agenda and philosophy, they are both fairly moderate. The Premier prefers BN because of this, and the two of them have a long history of collaboration in the 14th general election (GE14).
“They have worked together as a coalition,” said Novel.
On the same note, he said, in politics, nobody wants to be an opposition due to power and economic issues.
Thus, he pointed out that PN and GRS could deliver stability and are willing to fulfill the request and wishes of GPS.
Meanwhile, Novel noted that UMNO does not want to form a coalition with PN because in the long term, UMNO’s power as a Malay political party would be taken over by Bersatu and Parti Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS).
This is not good for UMNO, he said.
