Will PBRS woes delight PBS?
He, more than anybody else, is well aware that the struggle could ultimately lead the party He (Jeffrey) is not keen for PBRS to merge with Upko ( United Pasok Momogun Kadazandusun Organisation) s PBS is likely to be the first choice, a move that Jeffrey will no doubt try to push for hard as he can see the eventual benefits for his elder brother.
At this week's delegates conference, Kurup was also elected president by his own faction s elected assemblymen.
Uphill battle
Most political observers feel Kurup has an uphill battle against Jeffrey's faction which probably has the tacit support and encouragement from some powerful factions within the BN, especially PBS.
Sources told malaysiakini that Pairin watched with dismay the recent developments within PBRS involving his highly-controversial brother s party lost power.
So far Pairin has refrained from making any comments, probably wanting to distance himself from what is basically an internal party problem and not wishing to be seen as encouraging any partisan developments.
"He is a little embarrassed by what's happening with his brother," one source said.
According to most observers, Kurup was not prepared for the aftermath of his decision to suspended Jeffrey's membership ahead of the PBRS delegates conference.
However, they said, if he had allowed Jeffrey to attend the conference and contest, the likelihood of him (Kurup) and his supporters losing at the elections was great.
"The younger Kitingan brother was all prepared for what he went into," the sources said.
Jeffrey has said he is prepared to let the courts decide the issue of the legality of his election as party president and did not think it would be a long-drawn out affair.
Another effect of the recent developments is that PBRS is now ineffective and without a clear leadership.
"Dr Jeffrey is not only a smart politician, he also has the resources to ensure that the majority of members are on his side," one senior journalist told malaysiakini.'
However, Kurup had no choice but to suspend Jeffrey and stop him from contesting ( and challenging him for the post of president).
After all this, the focus of attention will mostly shift to the courts which will be asked to determine who the legally elected president is.
But, eventually, when the party cannot function effectively anymore, the Registrar of Societies will probably have to step in.
The party leaders will then probably be asked to state why the party should not be suspended or even de-registered.
Bigger prize
This, according to most observers, is probably what Jeffrey is aiming at so that he can bring most, if not all, the factions within and aligned to PBS and Pairin, back into the PBS fold.
If this were to happen, the next question is whether Jeffrey will risk incurring the wrath of BNs top leadership by appearing to help Pairin's efforts in securing a bigger prize when present Sabah Chief Minister Chong Kah Kiat's two-year term ends in March next year.
The Kadazandusun community, as represented by PBS, is raring to get back into power politics after being left out in the cold for many years following PBS' downfall.
But its leaders, including Pairin, have learnt a bitter lesson after trying to take on the BN alone and paying a big price for their stand-alone political adventurism.
Pairin openly admitted his error and apologised to Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad when he reapplied to rejoin BN recently.
So Pairin and his chums can be expected to tread more cautiously now, and will probably submit to being second fiddle to Sabah Umno in the sometimes bizarre political games of Malaysia's easternmost state.
Another question now is where do Sabah Umno leaders like Musa Aman and Salleh Keruak stand in all this?
To be sure, they are all equally intrigued and wonder what Sabah Umno's position will be when there is a change in the leadership baton.
Most likely, as outsiders and like leaders of other component parties, they will leave PBRS to sort out its own internal bickering.
But at the same time, it is difficult not to conclude that all this may give PBS an unexpected new political leverage and will allow it to have an important say when the time comes to negotiate for seats and positions in the state government.
