GPS won’t rejoin BN so as not to be like a small fish in a big pond
KUCHING: Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) will not consider returning to Barisan Nasional (BN), plain and simple.
This was made clear by State Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah when responding to reporters after officiating at ‘TEDx Kenyalang: Shine for Others 2019’ at Waterfront Hotel, yesterday.
“I do not see that happening (in the future),” he said. “To me, the 14th general election (GE14) brought us some blessings. Without the GE14, we would not have set up GPS.”
He recalled that Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB), despite being a senior member of the state BN, was only a small player among 14 parties in the BN at the federal level.
“When you are in a big organisation like that, decisions are always based on consensus. A party member can’t be individualistic. But now we can speak up and they have to listen to us.
“We can work together with the federal government whether it is Pakatan Harapan (PH) — or BN in the future — but they have to come to us and not the other way around,” he said.
He also pointed out that what happened in last Saturday’s Tanjung Piai by-election would not necessarily happen in the next Sarawak election due to different issues.
“As part of BN, and now on our own, we have always been very strong. In the GE14, we did not lose to PH Sarawak.
“I hope the people of Sarawak can see that the state government sincerely wants to look after them.
“The issues are very much related to the people’s sentiments and rights which were eroded over the years.
“We can’t gamble that an outside political organisation like the PH would rule us the way we want to be ruled.
“If people in Malaya no longer accept either BN or PH, why should we accept one or the other or both in the state?” he asked.
