Party gives backing for vote of no confidence

Sabah Progressive Party (Sapp) supreme council today decided to endorse party president Yong Teck Lee's call for a vote of no-confidence against Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmah Badawi.
With this endorsement, the party sends a clear message to the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition that the motion of no-confidence was a party decision and not one made by only a handful of leaders.
BN yesterday had justified its no-action against the party on the grounds that the call of no-confidence against Abdullah was not Sapp's official stand.
At the Supreme Council meeting today, the party however failed to come to a conclusion if it should pull out of BN.
Instead, Yong told reporters to ask BN secretary general Tengku Adnan Mansor on Sapp's position in the coalition. The press conference is still ongoing.
The party had started its meeting at about 10am this morning to discuss Yong’s call for a no-confidence vote against the PM.
The meeting was expected to be a showdown between Yong and his deputy Raymond Tan, who is also Sabah deputy chief minister and infrastructure minister.
Tan has slammed his party leader’s move against the prime minister, stating that he was “confused and embarrassed” by Sapp’s decision.
He added that the party's supreme council was not consulted on the matter and blamed Yong of acting on his own.
It is learnt that Yong has been able to convince at least four of the party's six elected representatives to back him.
They include two MPs and two state assemblypersons, including state assistant minister Melanie Chia.
The other two state assembly persons, including Tan, are likely to break away if the party supreme council decides today to pull out from BN.
Before the meeting began this morning, Yong and Tan were seen having a 50-minute discussion.
Meanwhile, the Star reported that the Anti-Corruption Agency is investigating Yong over the alleged payment of RM5 million from the sale of shares belonging to a state-owned company to his agents in 1996 when he was Sabah chief minister.

tunku : now that sapp has backed yong teck lee, what say BN ? will they sack sapp ? will sapp pull out from bn? the only reason behind this is two morons, anwar and pak lah.