Joseph Kurup

Tan Sri Datuk Seri Panglima Joseph Kurup (born 15 December 1944) is a Malaysian politician. He is the Member of the Parliament of Malaysia for the Pensiangan constituency in Sabah and a Minister in the Department of Prime Minister Najib Razak. He is the founder and President of the United Sabah People's Party (PBRS) in the Barisan Nasional coalition.

Sabah state politics (1985–2008)

Kurup was a member of the United Sabah Party (PBS) when it was founded in 1985. In the 1985 election he won the seat of Sook in the Sabah State Legislative Assembly, and the PBS, led by Joseph Pairin Kitingan, toppled the Barisan Nasional government. Over the following nine years, Kurup served as a minister in Kitingan's government.

In 1994, Kitingan's government came to an end after a series of defections from the PBS to Barisan Nasional. Kurup was one of the leaders of the defectors, setting up the PBRS, gaining admission for the new party to Barisan Nasional, and winning appointment as Deputy Chief Minister in the new Barisan Nasional state government. In 1999, Kurup faced his first electoral test since the defection, and suffered a double defeat: he ran against Kitingan in the federal seat of Keningau, and lost, and was also defeated by Kitingan's brother Jeffrey for the State Assembly seat of Bingkor. It was not until 2004, after the PBS had also joined Barisan Nasional, that Kurup returned to an elected position, winning back the State Assembly seat of Sook. Meanwhile, in 2002, he had been challenged for the PBRS presidency by Jeffrey Kitingan, and survived after a decision by the Registrar of Societies. Jeffrey had left PBS to join PBRS in 1999.