KOTA KINABALU – Several candidates in the last general election (GE15) have filed three election petitions to challenge the polling results for Putatan, Tenom, and Tuaran parliamentary constituencies.
PKR’s Awang Husaini sought to challenge the results that saw Barisan Nasional candidate Datuk Shahelmy Yahya win Putatan with a 124-vote majority in GE15 last year, his lawyer confirmed with reporters today.
Shahelmey garnered 16,234 votes while Husaini gained 16,110 in the four-cornered fight for the seat.
Shahelmy was also among those who courted controversy after he turned against his own party by working with Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) in the polls.
The Tanjung Keramat assemblyman was appointed Sabah’s deputy chief minister in the recent Sabah political crisis on January 5.
Umno is expected to take disciplinary action against him along with four other Sabah party leaders.
Meanwhile, GRS information chief Datuk Joniston Bangkuai also filed a petition against the polling results in Tuaran.
The seat was won by Datuk Seri Madius Tangau from Pakatan Harapan component Upko, with a 233-vote majority.
Joniston garnered 24,710 votes against Tangau’s 24,943 in a six-cornered fight during GE15.
Parti Kesejahteraan Demokratik Masyarakat president Datuk Peter Anthony, whose nomination papers were rejected by the Tenom returning officer, had also filed an election petition challenging the decision.
Tenom was won by independent Riduan Rubin, who is a KDN ally. – The Vibes, January 15, 2023
