KUALA LUMPUR, June 12 (Xinhua) -- Four political parties of the eastern Malaysian state of Sarawak on Tuesday announced their exit from the Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition, after an election loss which saw the biggest coalition surrender its power to the Pakatan Harapan alliance led by Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad.
The Sarawak component parties, including Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu Sarawak (PBB) and three other parties, said they will form a new coalition of Sarawak-based parties known as Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS), loosely translated as Alliance of the Sarawak parties, according to a statement from the office of Sarawak chief minister Abang Johari, also president of PBB.
"We believe that it is timely and appropriate for the State of Sarawak to embark on a new political platform, going forward, in order to face challenges, in line with the changing aspirations, needs and demands of a very wide range of cross-section of Sarawak populace," the statement said.
Before the election, BN is comprised of more than a dozen big and small component parties across Malaysia, with the United Malays National Organization, the largest political party in Malaysia as its core.
But after the election, more and more parties are facing calls to drop out from the coalition. The exit of Sarawak BN component parties may deal a heavy blow to the system. Prior to this, several parties in Sabah state already announced their exit.
