A post-election alliance between Warisan and Barisan Nasional (BN) to form the Sabah government could reignite political instability and derail development efforts, warn analysts.
They argue that the two parties’ long-standing rivalry renders any partnership fragile, noting that the alliance may be prompted more by the personal ambitions of their two leaders than a shared policy agenda.
Founded in 2016 following Shafie Apdal’s acrimonious departure from Umno, Warisan went on to win 21 seats at the 2018 state election.
Shafie was named chief minister after Warisan ousted the state BN administration by securing a simple majority in the state assembly with the support of then-ally Pakatan Harapan (PH) and several defecting BN assemblymen.
According to Bilcher Bala of Universiti Malaysia…