State DAP chairman Stephen Wong said PPBM could not be stopped from spreading its wings to Sabah but pointed out that Shafie, the Warisan president, should be afforded every chance to lead the state.
“We are behind him as we believe he is a capable chief minister,” Wong told reporters at the Sabah DAP Chinese New Year open house here today.
DAP adviser Lim Kit Siang, who attended the open house, declined to comment until Shafie had released his statement.
Shafie, who is in Tawau, is expected to release a statement later on the announcement by Prime Minister and PPBM chairman Dr Mahathir Mohamad that the party has decided to enter Sabah.
Yesterday, Finance Minister and DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng said PPBM’s decision to spread its wings to Sabah should be discussed at the PH Leadership Council meeting first.
Wong said he was unsure of the prospects of working with former Sabah Umno elected representatives who are expected to join PPBM once it establishes its presence in the state.
“We can’t say for now how we will work with them, but as I have mentioned before, we do not condone the move (PPBM accepting former Umno leaders),” said the Sandakan MP.
On another note, Kit Siang called for the setting up of a Royal Commission of Inquiry to relook previous cases, including those involving alleged judicial interference in an appeal concerning the late Karpal Singh and also the Indira Gandhi child conversion case.
“The RCI is needed because of the revelations by a Court of Appeal judge of judicial corruption and interference.
“This is because in the new Malaysia we want to build, the three branches of government are fully respected and integrity is restored,” he said.
He was commenting on an affidavit filed by Hamid Sultan Abu Backer about misconduct in the judiciary, which has gone viral and caused much discussion in the legal fraternity.
The 65-page affidavit was filed in support of lawyer Sangeet Kaur Deo’s court application seeking a declaration that Chief Justice Richard Malanjum had failed in his duty to complete investigations into two widely publicised cases of judicial interference.