Sabah Pakatan Harapan (PH) is in disarray, with Sabah PKR refusing to back Datuk Ewon Benedick as the new state chairman.

Instead, Sabah PKR leaders, including its chief, Datuk Mustapha Sakmud have been reported by local press meeting Chief Minister cum Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) chairman Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor in secret talks.

Sabah PKR insists the PH chair is rightfully theirs, accusing Benedick’s Upko of being too new to lead the coalition.

“There’s never been a selection process. The Sabah chair has always been ours,” said PKR state secretary Sazalye Donol.

Sazalye also blasted the temporary appointment of a Kuala Lumpur-based Amanah leader to chair Sabah PH, calling it “insulting.”

He also dismissed Benedick’s bid, saying Upko is too small a party to lead the coalition.

“If it were DAP, it would make more sense. But Upko? No chance,” he said.

The row comes as Sabah DAP wrestles with whether to remain part of the GRS-led government.

The meeting also comes at a time after Hajiji already told PH chairman Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim of a PH-GRS pact would be good for the upcoming Sabah election due this year.

Sabah DAP chairman Datuk Phoong Jin Zhe said the party is undecided and will consult PH partners before making a move.

Phoong’s hesitation follows corruption allegations against GRS leaders, raising doubts about DAP’s future in government.

The uncertainty adds more tension to an already fragile Sabah PH coalition.

Sazalye, however, denied any crisis within Sabah PH but admitted that only PH chairman Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim can resolve the leadership dispute.

Upko president Ewon Benedick was appointed Sabah PH chairman on December 1, replacing Datuk Christina Liew.

He’s the third person to hold the post, after Liew and the late Datuk Lajim Ukin.

Benedick has urged coalition leaders to judge him on his two-year term, stressing that his appointment followed PH’s rules.

“I want to fulfil the mandate given to me. Judge me in two years,” he said. – January 3, 2025