Sabah BN chairperson Bung Moktar Radin shed tears today when announcing the opposition coalition's candidate for the coming Kimanis by-election.
He lost his composure when speaking of the qualifications of Mohamad Alamin and how he envisioned the rising of Sabah Umno/BN via the Kimanis polls.
"He is 48 years old, he is a local. He was once elected as the (Bongawan) state assemblyperson. He is no stranger to the people in Kimanis," said Bung, who is Sabah Umno chief.
At this juncture, Bung raised his hands to his face palms outwards and was at a loss for words for a while. His supporters next to him then handed him tissue papers.
"We feel that this factor is very important to ensure the positive (response) to our candidate [...] (We hope) the by-election in Kimanis will result in a positive impact on the rising of the Sabah Umno," he then continued.
In December 2018, Sabah BN/Umno was hit by an exodus of six of its MPs, nine state assemblypersons and two Umno senators.
Only Bung and former state chief minister and Sungai Sibuga state assemblyperson Musa Aman are still with the party.
Meanwhile, Bung also said all the opposition parties in Sabah including Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) have agreed to cooperate towards winning the Kimanis by-election.
He said PBS had agreed not to field a candidate in Kimanis.
"PBS president Maximus Johnity Ongkili said his party will support the party that will oppose to (Sabah) temporary passes (PSS) initiative," added Bung.
It was reported that other opposition parties in Sabah, namely the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), Parti Solidariti Tanah Airku (Star), the United Sabah National Organisation (Usno) and the Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) have decided to stay out of the by-election.
In April, PBS reportedly announced its plan to contest Kimanis if the court nullified the general election result for the seat.
On Dec 25, Maximus told media that his party had yet to make a decision.
Bung said he also wished that the Kimanis by-election would see Muafakat National taking root and being accepted in Sabah.
"The spirit of Muafakat National which is gradually gaining popularity must be put forward in Kimanis.
"It is time for all of us to prove that Muafakat National, which does not sideline (any) race or religion, will kick-off the nationalism in Sabah," he said.
Muafakat National, a political cooperation bloc between Umno and PAS, had proven successful in the Nov 16 Tanjung Piai by-election where BN's Wee Jeck Seng won with a landslide victory.
Mohamad, the BN candidate for Kimanis, meanwhile expressed gratitude to Anifah Aman who chose to stay out of the by-election.
He said Anifah pledged to campaign for him despite the latter quitting Umno in September 2018.
"We are very optimistic about winning the polls. The by-election is not only important to me personally, but we can also convey a message that the people are suffering under the administration of Warisan and Pakatan Harapan," he said.
Anifah won the Kimanis seat by a slim 156-vote majority in the 14th general election last year.
On Dec 2, the Federal Court upheld the Election Court's ruling to nullify Anifah's victory in the Kimanis parliamentary seat due to irregularities.
The Kimanis by-election will be held on Jan 18. Nomination day is on Jan 4 with early voting on Jan 14. - Mkini
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