Gabungan Parti Sarawak Explained

Country:	Malaysia
Sarawak Parties Alliance
Lang1:	Malay
Name Lang1:	Malay: Gabungan Parti Sarawak Malay: ݢابوڠن ڤرتي سراوق
Lang2:	Chinese
Name Lang2:	Chinese: 砂拉越政党联盟 Chinese: Shālāyuè zhèngdǎng liánméng
Lang3:	Iban
Name Lang3:	Gempung Parti Sarawak
Abbreviation:	GPS Gabungan Parti Sarawak
Slogan:	Utamakan Sarawak (Sarawak First)^[1] ^[2] ^[3]
Anthem:	"GPS Utamakan Sarawak"^[4] "GPS Prioritises Sarawak"
Seats3 Title:	Sarawak State Legislative Assembly
Chairman:	Abang Abdul Rahman Zohari Abang Openg
Split:	Barisan Nasional
Leader1 Title:	Deputy Chairman
Leader1 Name:	Awang Tengah Ali Hasan Douglas Uggah Embas
Leader2 Title:	Vice Chairmen
Leader2 Name:	Sim Kui Hian Tiong King Sing Joseph Salang Gandum
Secretary General:	Alexander Nanta Linggi
Founder:	Abang Abdul Rahman Zohari Abang Openg
Legalised:	19 November 2018^[5] ^[6]
Affiliation1 Title:	Member parties
Headquarters:	Kuching, Sarawak
Newspaper:	Jiwa Bakti The Borneo Post Suara Sarawak Malay Mail Sa'ati
Ideology:	Multiracialism
Colours:	Red and black
Seats1 Title:	Dewan Negara
Seats2 Title:	Dewan Rakyat
Seats2:	(Sarawak seats)
Seats4 Title:	Premier of Sarawak
Seats4:	(Sarawak only)

The Sarawak Parties Alliance (Malay: Gabungan Parti Sarawak; abbrev: GPS) is a Sarawak-based national political alliance in Malaysia. It was established in 2018 by four former Barisan Nasional (BN) component parties operating solely in Sarawak following the federal coalition's defeat in the 2018 Malaysian general election.^[7] It is currently the fourth largest political coalition with 23 seats in the Dewan Rakyat, and forms the government in the state of Sarawak.

History

Formation

GPS was formed on 12 June 2018, consisting of Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB), Sarawak United Peoples' Party (SUPP), Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS), and Progressive Democratic Party (PDP).^{[8] [9]} The four parties were former component parties in Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition, with a gentleman's agreement that Peninsular or Sabah based parties within BN would never establish themselves in Sarawak, thus giving the parties a relative autonomy.^[10] The coalition focuses on the state's interests and rights based on the Malaysia Agreement and remain an opposition at the Pakatan Harapan (PH) federal government despite the readiness to "cooperate and collaborate".^[7] On 23 August 2018, its chairman, Abang Abdul Rahman Zohari Abang Openg, announced that GPS Gabungan Parti Sarawak has been registered and is awaiting the issuance of the official letter from the Registrar of Societies (RoS).^[11] The coalition was finally legalised on 19 November 2018.^{[5] [6]}

Policy

As the component parties of GPS quit BN en bloc, it inherits BN's former place and dominance in Sarawak politics. The party claimed to continue the legacy of Adenan Satem, a relatively popular former Sarawak's chief minister, who led BN Sarawak to its triumph in 2016 state election on basis of greater autonomy of Sarawak.^[12] Although the party pushed for constitutional amendments in accordance to 1963 Malaysian Agreement, its policy did not mention an outright Sarawak independence, rather it prefers to work within existing laws to regain what it calls as Sarawak's rights. The coalition launched its party policy in Kuching on 19 January 2019.^[13] It often received condemnation from opposition parties in Sarawak and foreign observers for continuing abuse of government powers, such as uneven allocation of aid and development and perceived punishment toward ethnic chiefs not aligned with the government. The party also directly or indirectly controlled most major media publications in Sarawak.^{[14] [15]}

Political crisis

See also: 2020–22 Malaysian political crisis. Following the political crisis in 2020 (which saw the PH government lose its majority in the Dewan Rakyat), GPS entered into an agreement by declaring support for the new government coalition, Perikatan Nasional (PN). GPS chairman, however, maintained that the agreement will not see GPS become a member of PN, but will remain as a partner instead.^[16] A week after PN's prime ministerial pick, Muhyiddin Yassin, was sworn in as the new premier, he announced his cabinet which saw four MPs from GPS appointed full ministers, and five others as deputy ministers.^[17]

Elections

See also: 2021 Sarawak state election and 2022 Malaysian general election. GPS made its maiden electoral appearance in 2021 Sarawak state election. The election was marked as a huge success for the party, as it increased control over Sarawak State Legislative Assembly by winning 76 out of 82 seats contested.^[18]

Member parties

Logo	Name				Ideology	Leader(s)	Seats contested	2022 result		Sarawak seats only	Sarawak Legislature Seats
								Votes (%)	Seats	Composition
		PBB		United Bumiputera Heritage Party	Sarawak nationalism	Abang Abdul Rahman Zohari Abang Openg	14	2.22%
		SUPP		Sarawak United Peoples' Party	Sarawakian regionalist Syncretic politics and centrism	Sim Kui Hian	7	1.08%
		PRS		Sarawak Peoples' Party	Sarawak nationalism	Joseph Salang Gandum	6	0.44%
		PDP		Progressive Democratic Party	Regionalism	Tiong King Sing	4	0.54%

Elected representatives

Dewan Negara (Senate)

Senators

See main article: Members of the Dewan Negara, 15th Malaysian Parliament.

• His Majesty's appointee:
  • Susan Chemarai Anding (PBB)
  • Awang Bemee Awang Ali Basah (PBB)
  • Rita Sarimah Patrick Insol (PRS)
  • Pele Peter Tinggom (PDP)
  • Robert Lau Hoi Yew (SUPP)
• Sarawak State Legislative Assembly:
  • Michael Mujah Lihan (PBB)
  • Ahmad Ibrahim (PBB)

Dewan Rakyat (House of Representatives)

Members of Parliament of the 15th Malaysian Parliament

See main article: Members of the Dewan Rakyat, 15th Malaysian Parliament. Gabungan Parti Sarawak has 23 MPs in the House of Representatives.

State	No.	Parliament Constituency	Member	Party
	P193				PBB
	P194				PBB
	P197				PBB
	P198				PBB
	P199				SUPP
	P200				PBB
	P201				PBB
	P202				PRS
	P203				PRS
	P204				PBB
	P206				PBB
	P207				PBB
	P208				SUPP
	P210				PRS
	P213				PBB
	P214				PRS
	P215				PBB
	P216				PRS
	P217				PDP
	P218				PBB
	P220				PDP
	P221				PBB
	P222				PBB
Total

Dewan Undangan Negeri (State Legislative Assembly)

Malaysian State Assembly Representatives

See main article: List of Malaysian State Assembly Representatives (2022–present).

Sarawak State Legislative Assembly

State	No.	Parliamentary Constituency	No.	State Constituency	Member	Party
	P192	Mas Gading	N01	Opar	Bily Sujang		SUPP
			N02	Tasik Biru	Henry Jinep		PDP
	P193	Santubong	N03	Tanjong Datu	Azizul Annuar Adenan		PBB
			N04	Pantai Damai	Abdul Rahman Junaidi		PBB
			N05	Demak Laut	Hazland Abang Hipni		PBB
	P194	Petra Jaya	N06	Tupong	Fazzrudin Abdul Rahman		PBB
			N07	Samariang	Sharifah Hasidah Sayeed Aman Ghazali		PBB
			N08	Satok	Ibrahim Baki		PBB
	P196	Stampin	N12	Kota Sentosa	Wilfred Yap Yau Sin		SUPP
			N13	Batu Kitang	Lo Khere Chiang		SUPP
			N14	Batu Kawah	Sim Kui Hian		SUPP
	P197	Kota Samarahan	N15	Asajaya	Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah		PBB
			N16	Muara Tuang	Idris Buang		PBB
			N17	Stakan	Hamzah Brahim		PBB
	P198	Puncak Borneo	N18	Serembu	Miro Simuh		PBB
			N19	Mambong	Jerip Susil		PBB
			N20	Tarat	Roland Sagah Wee Inn		PBB
	P199	Serian	N21	Tebedu	Simon Sinang Bada		PBB
			N22	Kedup	Maclaine Ben @ Martin Ben		PBB
			N23	Bukit Semuja	John Ilus		PBB
	P200	Batang Sadong	N24	Sadong Jaya	Aidel Lariwoo		PBB
			N25	Simunjan	Awla Idris		PBB
			N26	Gedong	Abang Abdul Rahman Zohari Abang Openg		PBB
	P201	Batang Lupar	N27	Sebuyau	Julaihi Narawi		PBB
			N28	Lingga	Dayang Noorazah Awang Sohor		PBB
			N29	Beting Maro	Razaili Gapor		PBB
	P202	Sri Aman	N30	Balai Ringin	Snowdan Lawan		PRS
			N31	Bukit Begunan	Mong Dagang		PRS
			N32	Simanggang	Francis Harden Hollis		SUPP
	P203	Lubok Antu	N33	Engkilili	Johnical Rayong Ngipa		PDP
			N34	Batang Ai	Malcom Mussen Lamoh		PRS
	P204	Betong	N35	Saribas	Ricky @ Mohamad Razi bin Sitam		PBB
			N36	Layar	Gerald Rentap Jabu		PBB
			N37	Bukit Saban	Douglas Uggah Embas		PBB
	P205	Saratok	N38	Kalaka	Mohamad Duri		PBB
			N39	Krian	Friday Belik		PDP
			N40	Kabong	Mohd Chee Kadirh		PBB
	P206	Tanjong Manis	N41	Kuala Rajang	Len Talif Salleh		PBB
			N42	Semop	Abdullah Saidol		PBB
	P207	Igan	N43	Daro	Safiee Ahmad		PBB
			N44	Jemoreng	Juanda Jaya		PBB
	P208	Sarikei	N45	Repok	Huang Tiong Sii		SUPP
			N46	Meradong	Ding Kuong Hiing		SUPP
	P209	Julau	N47	Pakan	William Mawan Ikom		PBB
			N48	Meluan	Rolland Duat Jubin		PDP
	P210	Kanowit	N49	Ngemah	Anyi Jana		PRS
			N50	Machan	Allan Siden Gramong		PBB
	P211	Lanang	N51	Bukit Assek	Chieng Jin Ek		SUPP
			N52	Dudong	Tiong King Sing		PDP
	P212	Sibu	N53	Bawang Assan	Wong Soon Koh		PDP
			N54	Pelawan	Michael Tiang Ming Tee		SUPP
			N55	Nangka	Annuar Rapaee		PBB
	P213	Mukah	N56	Dalat	Fatimah Abdullah		PBB
			N57	Tellian	Royston Valentine		PBB
			N58	Balingian	Abdul Yakub Arbi		PBB
	P214	Selangau	N59	Tamin	Christopher Gira Sambang		PRS
			N60	Kakus	John Sikie Tayai		PRS
	P215	Kapit	N61	Pelagus	Wilson Nyabong Ijang		PRS
			N62	Katibas	Lidam Assan		PBB
			N63	Bukit Goram	Jefferson Jamit Unyat		PBB
	P216	Hulu Rajang	N64	Baleh	Nicholas Kudi Jantai Masing		PRS
			N65	Belaga	Liwan Lagang		PRS
			N66	Murum	Chukpai Ugon		PRS
	P217	Bintulu	N67	Jepak	Iskandar Turkee		PBB
N68			Tanjong Batu	Johny Pang Leong Ming		SUPP
N69			Kemena	Stephen Rundi Utom		PBB
N70			Samalaju	Majang Renggi		PRS
P218	Sibuti	N71	Bekenu	Rosey Yunus		PBB
		N72	Lambir	Ripin Lamat		PBB
P219	Miri	N73	Piasau	Sebastian Ting Chiew Yew		SUPP
		N74	Pujut	Adam Yii Siew Sang		SUPP
		N75	Senadin	Lee Kim Shin		SUPP
P220	Baram	N76	Marudi	Penguang Manggil		PDP
		N77	Telang Usan	Dennis Ngau		PBB
		N78	Mulu	Gerawat Gala		PBB
P221	Limbang	N79	Bukit Kota	Abdul Rahman Ismail		PBB
		N80	Batu Danau	Paulus Gumbang		PBB
P222	Lawas	N81	Ba'kelalan	Baru Bian		PDP
		N82	Bukit Sari	Awang Tengah Ali Hasan		PBB
Total

GPS state governments

State	Leader type	Member	Party	State Constituency
				PBB	Bukit Saban
				PBB	Bukit Sari
				SUPP	Batu Kawah

State	Leader type	Member	Party	State Constituency
	Speaker			PBB	Non-MLA
	Deputy Speaker	Idris Buang		PBB	Muara Tuang

Ministerial posts

Portfolio	Office Bearer	Party		Constituency
Deputy Prime Minister Minister of Energy Transition and Water Transformation Minister Responsible for Sabah and Sarawak	Dato' Sri Haji Fadillah Yusof		PBB	Petra Jaya
Minister of Works	Dato Sri Alexander Nanta Linggi		PBB	Kapit
Minister of Women, Family and Community Development	Dato' Sri Hajah Nancy Shukri		PBB	Santubong
Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture	Dato Sri Tiong King Sing		PDP	Bintulu
Minister of National Unity	Dato Sri Aaron Ago Dagang		PRS	Kanowit

Portfolio	Office Bearer	Party		Constituency
Deputy Minister of Rural and Regional Development	Datuk Rubiah Wang		PBB	Kota Samarahan
Deputy Minister of Transport	Datuk Hasbi Habibollah		PBB	Limbang
Deputy Minister of Economy	Dato Hanifah Hajar Taib		PBB	Mukah
Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability	Dato' Sri Huang Tiong Sii		SUPP	Sarikei
Deputy Minister of Health	Dato Lukanisman Awang Sauni		PBB	Sibuti
Deputy Minister of Digital	Datuk Wilson Ugak Kumbong		PRS	Hulu Rajang

References

1. Web site: It's 'Sarawak First That's GPS' development approach. New Sarawak Tribune. 29 November 2018. 23 January 2019.
2. Web site: A guiding light for GPS. Jeremy Veno. The Borneo Post. 10 January 2019. 23 January 2019. According to Abang Johari, the focal point of the GPS logo depicts the Kenyalang (hornbill) in the shape of an ‘S’ which reflects the vision and slogan of the party of putting ‘Sarawak First’..
3. Web site: GPS will be new platform for Sarawak Government. Bernama. Daily Express. 21 January 2019. 23 January 2019. The defeat of the Barisan Nasional (BN) government at the federal level after the general election last year saw BN component parties in the state forming the GPS with its slogan or catchphrase “Utamakan Sarawak” or “Sarawak First”..
4. Web site: Lirik Lagu GPS. 13 September 2019.
5. Web site: Gabungan Parti Sarawak gets nod from RoS. Hidir Reduan Abdul Rashid. New Straits Times. Yahoo! News Singapore. 19 November 2018. 20 November 2018. 22 November 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20181122191429/https://sg.news.yahoo.com/gabungan-parti-sarawak-gets-nod-114238160.html. dead.
6. Web site: ROS officially approves GPS. Samuel Aubrey. Abdul Hakim Bujang. Kim How Pin. Peter Boon. The Borneo Post. 20 November 2018. 20 November 2018.
7. Web site: Sarawak BN parties pull out of coalition to form independent state-based pact. Sharon Ling. Geryl Ogilvy. The Star. 12 June 2018. 12 June 2018.
8. Web site: Malaysia's Sarawak State Government leaves Barisan Nasional: Statement. Bloomberg. The Edge Markets. 12 June 2018. 12 June 2018.
9. Web site: Commentary: Free from the shackles of a fallen coalition, does Sarawak parties leaving spell the end of the Barisan Nasional?. Lee Poh Onn. Channel NewsAsia. 15 June 2018. 15 June 2018. 12 June 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190612100628/https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/commentary/sarawak-parties-leave-barisan-nasional-end-of-coalition-10430826. dead.
10. Web site: KiniTV. 21 April 2016. Umno masuk Sarawak, saya letak jawatan - Adenan. YouTube.
11. Web site: Abang Jo: Gabungan Parti Sarawak is registered. Bernama. Free Malaysia Today. 23 August 2018. 23 August 2018.
12. Web site: 2021-11-29. GPS clear choice to fulfil Adenan's vision. 2022-01-26. New Sarawak Tribune. en-US.
13. News: Azil. Firdaus. 19 January 2019. GPS mampu pastikan hak Sarawak kembali terjamin. Astro Awani. 26 January 2022.
14. Web site: 2016-05-06. It's raining money in Sarawak. 2022-01-26. New Mandala. en-AU.
15. News: 2022-01-27. Evil of GPS to deny salaries to political opponents: PSB's Bruce Chai. 2022-01-27. The Vibes. en.
16. Web site: CMO: GPS not a member of Perikatan Nasional, will support Muhyiddin regardless. Borneo Post. 29 February 2020. 29 February 2020.
17. Web site: Fadillah: GPS ministers, deputies will fight for Sarawak's rights. The Star. 9 March 2020. 9 March 2020.
18. Web site: Landslide win for GPS coalition as it retains power in Sarawak state polls. 2022-01-26. CNA. en.