The assemblyman, who declined to be named, said Umno was better off joining the ruling Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) or exiting Sabah altogether.
“The sentiment now favours local parties,” added the assemblyman, who said it did not help that Sabah Umno was split between those who supported chief minister Hajiji Noor and those who did not.
Speaking to FMT, the Umno leader said this was why he believed Umno should take a step back if it did not want to work with GRS.
This way, the party could still be on good terms and work with GRS at the federal level, similar to Umno’s arrangement with Gabungan Parti Sarawak.
He also said Warisan’s pull among Sabahans had waned, and that the party was only strong in some parts of Sabah’s east coast.
This was why working with Warisan might not be beneficial for Umno, he said.
The term of the current Sabah government will expire in October 2025, but Hajiji has hinted at the possibility of the next state election being held as early as next year.
Warisan president Shafie Apdal and Sabah Umno chief Bung Moktar Radin attempted to topple Hajiji’s government in January last year.
Another Sabah Umno leader agreed that working with Warisan was not the right move for the party.
The leader who also declined to be named said even though he was aligned with Bung, he believed the party’s best option was to join forces with GRS.
“Going alone will not be favourable to us. There are advantages to joining the coalition (GRS),” he said, adding that if Umno went solo, the party risked losing more ground in Sabah.
For years, Umno was the dominant party in Sabah, particularly when Barisan Nasional ruled the state. In the 2013 state election, Umno won 31 out of the then 60 seats up for grabs.
Over a decade later, Sabah Umno only controls 12 seats, and is split between those who back Bung and those who back Hajiji.
The Sabah Umno leader who spoke to FMT said party president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi had urged members in the state to work with those in the unity government.
Another Sabah Umno grassroots leader said support for Umno might decline if it chose to take on GRS.
“Many voters may have voted for us (in the 2020 state election) because of GRS, but if we decide against working with them, we should stay out of the polls altogether,” said the leader who declined to be named.