Matbali Musah

Summary

Datuk Matbali Musah is the GRS Member of Parliament for Sipitang in Sabah, elected at GE15 in November 2022 with a 4,691-vote majority. A direct GRS member of Bisayan ethnic heritage, he previously served as ADUN for Lumadan (2018–2020) and has held positions in both UMNO and Bersatu in Sabah before becoming a GRS direct member. He is a backbench MP who has raised constituency concerns on flood relief, school safety, and rural digital connectivity in the Dewan Rakyat.

Biography

Datuk Matbali Musah is a Malaysian politician who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Sipitang (P178) since November 2022 [1]. He is an ethnic Bisayan, a sub-ethnic group of the indigenous Kadazan-Dusun population native to the Beaufort and Kuala Penyu districts in southern Sabah [2]. Prior to entering federal parliament, he served as the Member of the Sabah State Legislative Assembly (ADUN) for Lumadan from May 2018 to September 2020 [2]. He contested the 2018 state election under the Barisan Nasional (UMNO) banner, after which he left UMNO to become an independent on 12 December 2018, and subsequently joined Bersatu on 6 April 2019 [2]. He later became Sipitang Division Chief of Sabah Bersatu and was previously the Division Deputy Chief of Sipitang for Sabah UMNO [2]. Following GE15 in November 2022, when Sabah Bersatu leaders under GRS Chairman Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor unanimously decided to leave Bersatu while remaining under GRS, Matbali became a direct member of Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) [3]. He won the Sipitang parliamentary seat at GE15 with 14,459 votes and a majority of 4,691 votes in a three-cornered contest [4]. In Parliament, he has raised constituency issues including calls for special emergency flood allocations for Sabah [5] and has spoken on school safety and student welfare matters [3].

Known for

Matbali Musah is known as the GRS MP for Sipitang who, along with three other Sabah MPs, switched support from Bersatu to GRS following GE15, triggering a constitutional dispute that reached the Federal Court before being resolved in January 2026 in his favour [6]. He is also recognised as a voice for rural Sabah constituents, having called in Parliament for emergency flood allocations and better school safety protections [7].

Political positions

Matbali Musah has advocated for increased federal emergency funding for flood-affected districts in Sabah, calling in Parliament for special emergency allocations to deal with the recurring flood situations in the region [5][8]. He has spoken on issues of school safety and child welfare, calling for a special anti-bullying unit at every District Education Office in conjunction with debates on the Education (Amendment) Bill 2025 [3]. He has also engaged with digital connectivity initiatives in his constituency, participating in events for Nadi on Wheels and Starlink rural broadband expansion in Sipitang [5][9]. His political alignment has evolved from UMNO to Bersatu and ultimately to direct GRS membership, consistently operating within the Sabah political framework.

Political career

1. May 2018Elected as Member of the Sabah State Legislative Assembly (ADUN) for Lumadan under the Barisan Nasional (UMNO) banner at GE14.⛓
2. 12 December 2018Left UMNO and became an independent assemblyman after contesting under BN-UMNO at the 2018 state election.⛓
3. 6 April 2019Joined Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu), subsequently rising to become Division Chief of Sipitang for Sabah Bersatu.⛓
4. September 2020Term as Lumadan ADUN ended following the 2020 Sabah state election.⛓
5. 19 November 2022Won the Sipitang parliamentary seat (P178) at GE15 under GRS with 14,459 votes and a majority of 4,691 votes in a three-cornered contest.⛓
6. December 2022Following Sabah Bersatu's unanimous decision to leave Bersatu while remaining under GRS, became a direct member of Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS).⛓
7. 9 January 2026Federal Court refused Bersatu's application for leave to appeal in a majority decision, concluding the three-year legal challenge over his parliamentary seat. Matbali retained his Sipitang seat.⛓

Election history

• 2022Sipitang (P178)Won31.5%⛓
• 2018Lumadan (N.9) — Sabah State AssemblyWon45.5%⛓

Perspectives on key issues

• VerifiedFactsMatbali Musah has been the MP for Sipitang (P178) under GRS since 19 November 2022, as listed on the official Parliament of Malaysia portal.⛓
• GovernmentConstitutional lawyer Datuk Tengku Fuad Tengku Ahmad opined that Matbali and the other three GRS MPs would not lose their seats as they contested under GRS at GE15, not under Bersatu or Perikatan Nasional, and therefore there was no breach of Article 49A of the Federal Constitution.⛓
• OppositionBersatu argued that Matbali and three other Sabah GRS MPs had 'crossed the floor' by sitting with the government bloc in the Dewan Rakyat on 19 December 2022, contending the Speaker's decision not to vacate their seats was 'tainted with illegality'. The Federal Court ultimately rejected Bersatu's final appeal in January 2026.⛓
• AffectedFlood-affected residents in Sipitang constituency faced recurring displacement, with 340 victims from 151 households across 22 villages affected in February 2026 alone, the context in which Matbali raised the call for special federal emergency allocations in Parliament.⛓

Notable legal history

Matbali Musah was among four GRS MPs whose parliamentary seats were challenged by Bersatu in a judicial review following their switch of support from Bersatu to GRS after GE15 in December 2022. Bersatu argued the Speaker's decision not to declare the seats vacant was 'tainted with illegality'. The High Court dismissed the judicial review in November 2023, ruling the Speaker's decision was non-justiciable (Source: theedgemalaysia.com). The Court of Appeal subsequently dismissed Bersatu's appeal, and on 9 January 2026, the Federal Court refused Bersatu's application for leave to appeal in a majority decision, concluding the three-year legal challenge with Matbali retaining his seat (Source: freemalaysiatoday.com; thestar.com.my). No criminal proceedings against Matbali Musah were found in the sources reviewed.