KOTA KINABALU: Sabah Umno will cut a deal with its chosen partners before the state election rather than after the polls are held, says Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin.

The state Umno chief said the party has learned well from its past experience of only negotiating how to share the spoils after winning an election.

He said they have also been taught a lesson that Umno must choose its partners carefully.

“We have gone through it before – making a deal after the last state election to form a government.

“But after forming the government, Umno was sidelined although we obtained more seats compared to other parties.

“Hence, any cooperation with other parties must be made before the election,” said the former deputy chief minister in a statement on Tuesday.

It is believed that the Kinabatangan MP was referring to the snap state election in 2020 in which Barisan Nasional worked with a then-loose Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) coalition after the Parti Warisan-led government was toppled.

Bung Moktar, also the Sabah Barisan chief, said Umno will only work with parties that will respect other partners in the would-be alliance as well as those that will bring benefits to Umno and the state.

“We do not want another internal crisis that will undermine efforts to develop Sabah,” said Bung Moktar, who is also the Lamag assemblyman.

Meanwhile, a political analyst said an electoral pact might be on the horizon between Barisan and Pakatan Harapan amid a very complex state political landscape with some local parties vying to keep national parties out of Sabah.

Rahezzal Shah said the two national coalitions are likely to work together as they might find it difficult to cut deals with the state’s ruling GRS or other parties to share the 73 state seats at stake.

“Barisan and Pakatan will find it most beneficial to work together as they don’t have to be bogged down with seat-sharing with other parties,” said Rahezzal, a Sabah UiTM senior lecturer on politics and public policy.

With the “bridges burned” following the January 2023 fallout between Bung Moktar and GRS chairman and Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor, he said that chances of any patch-up between the two sides appear slim.The option that looks attractive to Barisan-Umno is to form a pact with Pakatan, he noted, with the selling point being that national parties PKR and Umno and local party Upko are working together.

https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2024/07/18/umno-to-negotiate-terms-with-partners-first-before-election-not-after