‘This may be my last time’: Abang Johari hints at possible final term as PBB president, calls on younger leaders to step up

Abang Johari (standing, eighth left) poses for a group photo with PBB northern zone members after officiating at the PBB Northern Zone Special Convention at Miri Indoor Stadium. — The Borneo Post pic

First Published: Sunday, 13 Sep 2026 6:02 PM MYT

MIRI, Sept 13 — “This may be my last time.”

That was the candid message from Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg as he called on the older generation to make way for younger leaders to carry on the responsibility and struggle of Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB).

The PBB president said leadership succession was a natural process and that the party must continuously prepare and train younger members to take over when the time came.

“I’m 76 years old, in four more years I’ll be 80.

“I want to be frank, this may be my last time. We cannot go against nature, even though our hearts may still feel young. Even if we feel young at heart, we cannot go against nature. But I will make the decision when the time comes.

“We are already getting old, and it is time for us to give way to the younger generation to carry on the responsibility and the struggle,” Abang Johari said this in his speech when officiating at the PBB Northern Zone Special Convention at Miri Indoor Stadium here today.

According to him, the party’s struggle would continue despite changes in its leadership, urging members not to feel disappointed when the time came for them to make way for younger leaders.

“Sometimes we feel disappointed when we are replaced. But this is the law of nature, the old are eventually replaced by the young.

“Leaders come and go. There comes a time when we say thank you and allow new people to take our place. But the spirit of PBB must be carried on by those who love Sarawak.

“What I mean is that we cannot go against nature. But PBB will always be there because we have a system to ensure the continuity of PBB,” he said.

He said the younger generation must be properly trained, not only in leadership but also in dealing with society and people of different backgrounds and religions.

“The successors must be trained, trained in how to communicate with people, how to engage with different communities and how to interact with people of different religions, so that there will be no toxicity,” he said.

Abang Johari said he was grateful to have been trained by leaders before him and believed the same responsibility must now be carried out by the current generation towards younger party members.

He said PBB had already introduced new faces, including young leaders, during the previous election.

“Therefore, those of us who are older should give way to the younger generation,” he said. — The Borneo Post