PENAMPANG: Parti Warisan’s insistence on portraying itself as an authentic local Sabah party should be questioned following its decision to spread its wings to Peninsular Malaysia four years ago.
PGRS Moyog Vice Chief Petrus Conrad Mojuntin said Warisan can no longer claim to be purely Sabah-based when it had openly established several divisions across the Peninsula.
“It is Warisan themselves who trumpeted that they are a genuine local party fighting for Sabah rights. But how can that be when they expanded to Johor, Selangor and other states in the Peninsula?” he said in a statement here, Sunday.
The national media earlier reported that Warisan began setting up branches and divisions in Peninsular Malaysia in 2020, starting with Johor and Selangor. The party’s Peninsular chapter was later launched on Dec 17, 2021, at a ceremony in Kuala Lumpur attended by party president Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal.
However, the party failed to win any of 25 or 26 seats it contested in the Peninsular Malaysia in the 2022 general election. It also performed poorly in Sabah, managing to retain only three of the eight seats it won in the 14th general election.
Among the casualties were Deputy President Datuk Darell Leiking and Information Chief Datuk Azis Jamman who failed to defend their Penampang and Sepanggar seats, respectively.
The expansion move also draw criticism from former party leaders where some said the West Malaysians had even asked why the party (Warisan) was there in the first place when Sabah’s problems remain unresolved.
Former Warisan Women’s Chief Datuk Norazlinah Arif made a remark on Aug 14, 2025, saying that Warisan’s foray into the Peninsula contradicted its oft-repeated ‘Sabah first’ narrative.
She claimed the move was largely aimed at positioning Shafie as a national figure and potential prime ministerial candidate rather than strengthening the party at home.
“Sabah lacked proper governance during Shafie’s time as Chief Minister from 2018 to 2020. Yet he (Shafie) had national ambitions. His focus was already on Putrajaya and his heart was not on leading Sabah to greater heights.
“His personal ambitions go far beyond the state’s borders,” said Norazlinah who is now incumbent Kunak assemblywoman.
A former Warisan Supreme Council member Mohammad Mohamarin said the party’s foray into West Malaysia caused discomfort among some of its leaders.
He said the resignation of former vice-president Datuk Peter Anthony — just days after Warisan formalised its West Malaysian expansion — was indicative of internal discord over the party’s strategic direction.
“Warisan used to promote itself as a local party that championed the people’s cause, but they don’t anymore. It is also unlikely to dominate Sabah politics in the future,” said Mohammad, the incumbent Banggi assemblyman who quit the party two years ago.
Following this, Petrus said the episode contrasts with the approach taken by Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS), whose chairman Datuk Seri Hajiji Haji Noor has remained focused on Sabah, with the coalition’s component parties being rooted in the state.
“If you are truly a local-based party, there is no need to expand all the way to the Peninsula. GRS will never do that because Hajiji’s focus is purely on Sabah,” he said.
Petrus said the episode should prompt voters to re-examine Warisan’s claim of being a purely Sabah party, given its track record and stated ambitions across the South China Sea.
