Shafie Apdal

Summary

Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal is the founding president of Parti Warisan (WARISAN), the Semporna MP, and the Senallang state assemblyman who served as Sabah's 15th Chief Minister from May 2018 to September 2020. A veteran politician who previously served as UMNO Vice President and federal minister, he left UMNO in 2015 to form WARISAN as a Sabah-based multiracial party. Following WARISAN's strong performance in the 2025 Sabah state election — winning 25 seats — he continues as Leader of the Opposition in the Sabah State Legislative Assembly.

Biography

Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie bin Apdal (born 20 October 1957 in Semporna, Sabah) is a Malaysian politician of Bajau descent and the founding president of Parti Warisan (WARISAN). He is currently the Member of Parliament for Semporna — a seat he has held since 1995 — and the Member of the Sabah State Legislative Assembly (MLA) for Senallang since 2018 [1]. Shafie completed his secondary education at Victoria Institution, Kuala Lumpur, holds a Diploma in Shipping Management from London Business College, and earned a Bachelor in Economics (Hons) from North Staffordshire Polytechnic, England, in 1992 [1]. He began his political career with the United Sabah National Organisation (USNO) before joining UMNO following USNO's dissolution in 1994, rising to become UMNO's Vice President — the first Sabahan to hold the post — and serving as Minister of Rural and Regional Development from April 2009 to July 2015 [1]. Following his removal from the federal cabinet in July 2015, he founded WARISAN, which was registered by the Registrar of Societies on 17 October 2016 [1]. In May 2018 he was sworn in as the 15th Chief Minister of Sabah, leading a coalition government with DAP and PKR, but lost power after WARISAN's defeat in the September 2020 Sabah state election to Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) led by Hajiji Noor [1]. He has since served as Leader of the Opposition in the Sabah State Legislative Assembly. In the November 2025 Sabah state election, Shafie retained the Senallang seat with a majority of 6,837 votes; WARISAN secured 25 seats, the second-largest bloc in the assembly [2][3].

Known for

Shafie Apdal is defined by his founding and leadership of WARISAN, a Sabah-based multiracial party that advocates for Sabah's autonomy, the restoration of rights under the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63), and improved public services for the state. He led Sabah's state government as Chief Minister from May 2018 to September 2020. He has consistently raised the inadequacy of healthcare and infrastructure in Sabah — including the state's critical shortage of medical specialists — as a legislator in both Parliament and the Sabah State Assembly.

Political positions

Shafie Apdal has consistently championed greater Sabah autonomy and the restoration of the state's rights under the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63), though he has also cautioned against politicians using MA63 as an electoral slogan without addressing concrete service delivery. He has highlighted severe healthcare deficits in Sabah, including the fact that the entire state had only one cardiologist at Queen Elizabeth Hospital as of September 2023, and a doctor-to-population ratio far below the national average. He has called for improved rural infrastructure, expanded clean water access, electricity supply, and a railway network connecting major Sabah towns. He argues that Sabah's multi-billion-ringgit state budget allocations are not being translated into basic services for ordinary Sabahans, particularly in rural areas. On party strategy, he has maintained WARISAN as an independent Sabah-based force, declining formal alliances with Peninsular-based coalitions in the 2025 state election and pledging that the party's sole pact is with the people of Sabah.

Education

1. Secondary schoolCompleted secondary education at Victoria Institution, Kuala Lumpur, having attended Sabah College, Kota Kinabalu for middle school.⛓
2. Diploma, London Business CollegeObtained a Diploma in Shipping Management from London Business College.⛓
3. 1992Received Bachelor in Economics (Hons) from North Staffordshire Polytechnic, England.⛓

Before politics

1. Early 1990sBegan political career with the United Sabah National Organisation (USNO). Following USNO's dissolution in 1994, joined UMNO.⛓

Political career

1. April 1995First elected to federal Parliament as UMNO member for Semporna, a seat he has held continuously since.⛓
2. 1999Appointed Deputy Minister of Housing and Local Government, later served as Deputy Minister of Defence (1999–2004).⛓
3. 2004Appointed Minister of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs under Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi; later given Ministry of Unity, Culture, Arts and Heritage.⛓
4. April 2009Became Minister of Rural and Regional Development in Prime Minister Najib Razak's first cabinet; simultaneously elected UMNO Vice President (third place), becoming the first Sabahan to hold the post.⛓
5. July 2015Removed from cabinet in Najib Razak's reshuffle, losing the Rural and Regional Development portfolio.⛓
6. October 2016Founded and became the first president of WARISAN (Parti Warisan Sabah), approved by the Registrar of Societies.⛓
7. May 2018Sworn in as the 15th Chief Minister of Sabah and State Minister of Finance, following WARISAN's coalition with DAP and PKR.⛓
8. September 2020WARISAN-led coalition lost the 2020 Sabah state election to GRS; Shafie vacated the Chief Minister's office. Became Leader of the Opposition in Sabah.⛓
9. December 2020WARISAN's annual general meeting voted to expand the party to national level; party later renamed Heritage Party (Parti Warisan).⛓
10. November 2022Retained Semporna parliamentary seat in GE15 under WARISAN banner. Party won 3 of 52 parliamentary seats contested nationwide.⛓
11. November 2025Retained Senallang state seat in 17th Sabah state election with a majority of 6,837 votes. WARISAN won 25 seats — the second-largest bloc — and Shafie continued as Leader of the Opposition.⛓

Election history

• 2025Senallang (State)Won79.6%⛓
• 2022Semporna (Parliament)Won⛓
• 2020Senallang (State)Won⛓
• 2018Semporna (Parliament)Won⛓
• 2018Senallang (State)Won⛓
• 2013Semporna (Parliament)Won⛓
• 2008Semporna (Parliament)Won⛓
• 2004Semporna (Parliament)Won⛓
• 1999Semporna (Parliament)Won⛓
• 1995Semporna (Parliament)Won⛓

Perspectives on key issues

• GovernmentMalay Mail reported that Housing and Local Government Minister Nga Kor Ming publicly called on Shafie, as Semporna MP of over 30 years, to take responsibility for addressing Semporna's cleanliness issues ahead of Visit Malaysia 2026, stating that maintaining the town's image is not solely the federal government's responsibility.⛓
• OppositionFollowing the 2025 Sabah state election, Malaysiakini reported that Shafie vowed to keep fighting for unity among Sabah-based parties and push for a fully Sabah-led political front, with WARISAN securing 25 seats as the biggest single party in the state assembly.⛓
• ExpertThe Star analysis (September 2020) observed that Shafie had tapped into Sabahans' latent sense of grievance about the development gap between Sabah and Peninsular Malaysia, and that his oratory carried candidates during the Sabah election campaign.⛓
• VerifiedFactsAccording to the Election Commission, Shafie retained Senallang in the November 2025 Sabah state election with 8,751 votes and a majority of 6,837 votes in a four-cornered contest — an increase from his 4,631-vote majority in 2020.⛓