KOTA KINABALU: The Electoral Commission (EC) is expected to brief the State Government soon over the sudden surge in automatically registered voters that totalled 574,120 for the imminent election.
Chief Minister Datuk Seri Haji Hajiji Haji Noor said he is aware of suspicions cast by lawmakers over the massive increase.
“After the briefing then we can answer. As we all know, the system now automatically registers any individual 18 years and above as voters,” he said.
On the status of former aide Datuk Wetrom Bahanda, Hajiji said any update is when the Bandau Assemblyman himself does so on social media.
“Nevertheless, we accept that he has chosen his own political stance,” he said.
Wetrom was reported to have filled a membership form to join Parti Kesejahteraan Demokratik Masyarakat (KDM).
Days earlier, he declared that he had joined Warisan.Meanwhile, he said Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) has shortlisted strong candidates for the coming elections and that GRS and Barisan Nasional would be working together during the coming elections in respect of a Memorandum of Understanding formalized in Jan 2021, three months after becoming the government.
“The pact was long before this election. East and West Malaysian politics is different. If BN and Perikatan Nasional (PN) are at each other in Peninsular, don’t disturb us in Sabah. GRS-BN has three more years to go. Sabah needs things to be stable so that we can carry on executing the Sabah Maju Jaya development plan.
“If a GRS candidate were to run, BN would support them and vice versa. That is the principle of teamwork. We need a fresh concept of politics in Sabah. Enough bickering, we don’t need that anymore.
“Our mutual enemy is the opposition that comprises Warisan, DAP and Pakatan Harapan among others. BN and PN is one government bloc at least here in Sabah,” he said.
He also said the long-awaited Bugaya by-election in Semporna would likely be done concurrently with the 15th General Elections.
On the move to lobby for a Sarawakian Deputy Prime Minister, Hajiji said it was a good idea which Sabah could also follow.