UMNO should no longer be seen as a peninsula-based party as it has long-established local roots in Sabah, says Ahmad Maslan.

Ahmad, who is Umno’s war room secretariat chief and a supreme council member, said the party has been present in Sabah for more than three decades and its leadership today is made up entirely of local Sabahans.

“Umno in Sabah is no longer a Malayan party. When a party has existed for 34 to 35 years in the state, it is no longer accurate to call it a ‘Parti Malaya’.

“It is now both a local and a national party – that is the most appropriate way to describe Umno and Barisan Nasional in Sabah,” he said during a dinner with Lahad Datu Umno division leaders on Tuesday (July 15) night.

His comments come amid growing sentiment in Sabah’s political landscape that the state needs to empower local-based parties – similar to Sarawak – to gain stronger bargaining power with Putrajaya.

He also expressed confidence that Umno could reclaim all state seats under the Lahad Datu parliamentary constituency, as it had during its peak in Sabah.

In 2018, following its defeat in the 14th General Election, Umno announced that its Sabah chapter would be granted greater autonomy to independently manage its own affairs – including leadership appointments, candidate selection and political strategy – as part of efforts to rebuild support in the state.