PBS wants formula on political posts
Friday, 15 April 2005 (Source: Daily Express)

KOTA KINABALU: Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) is requesting Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman, as chairman of the State Barisan Nasional (BN), to formulate an acceptable and transparent power sharing arrangement.

Its Information Chief Henrynus Amin, in a statement Thursday, said the formula would be used as a guide for all BN assemblymen in their respective constituencies.

This is necessary given the apparent problems faced by PBS elected representatives to exercise their authority on political appointments, he said.

Without proper guidelines, he said politicians without locus standi were hindering the work of civil servants in district management and civil affairs.

At the moment, the BN's practice is to give full power to the elected representatives in the constituency to decide on political appointments after considering the interest of the people and the Barisan Nasional.

While this principle is applied in all BN held seats, the 13 PBS elected representatives are not able to function normally due to unwarranted political interference, he said.

Henrynus said it would not be fair if only PBS representatives were asked to share power in their respective areas when their counterparts hold sole monopoly over appointments in their areas.

It must be acknowledged that PBS supporters state-wide played a major role in ensuring an overwhelming victory by the BN in the last election especially in marginal areas, he said.

PBS regrets that in most non-PBS BN areas there is hardly a single appointment of leaders from the party in the local PKR office, he said.

"The situation is similar regarding appointments of native chiefs and village chiefs with the exception of Karanaan where one of the Pemaju Mukim is from PBS," he said.

Henrynus said in this respect, PBS was requesting that in other BN held areas a set of number of political posts in the PKR office and native courts be given to PBS leaders as in the case of Tandek where Datuk Dr Maximus Ongkili who as the assemblyman had allocated the post of CDO to Umno as well as half of the native chiefs in Kota Marudu.

He said the call for a power sharing arrangement among BN component parties is a fair request and consistent with the concept power sharing espoused by the BN.