Trial of Kimanis election petition commences
KOTA KINABALU: The trial of Kimanis parliamentary seat election petition to challenge the victory of Datuk Seri Anifah Aman in the 14th general election (GE14) commenced at the Election Court here, yesterday.
In the opening remarks, counsel Frederic Chang, who represented the petitioner, Datuk Karim Bujang cum Parti Warisan Sabah candidate, told Justice Lee Heng Cheong that they would show that there was alleged general bribery and corrupt practice during the campaign period and the election through a vehicle called Jalinan Rakyat.
He said the petitioner would also show that there were alleged blatant breaches of the Election Laws in that there were serious discrepancies and irregularities in the alleged polling and counting process.
The counsel further said they would show that the alleged general bribery, corrupt practice and breaches or non-compliance of Election Laws, had affected the result of the said election.
The first witness called by the petitioner, Mohd Rezza Akmad Namil, 30, said he was given RM200 in cash the night before GE14 as “wang saguhati” allegedly from two men referred to as Datuk Anifah and Datuk Ariffin for the purpose of helping them to win the election and promised to vote their political party at that time.
In his witness statement, the witness also testified that on the said night, they went to the house of one Haji Latip and met with a woman named Saidah, who was allegedly an agent for Jalinan Rakyat to take the cash as earlier informed by her and who had gone to the witness's house.
He said when he reached Haji Latip's house, Saidah, who was there, brought him to meet Hj Latip, who allegedly gave him the cash and allegedly told him the purpose of giving him the cash, and the witness was also allegedly asked not to say anything about the cash.
The witness further testified that this alleged practice was not the first time that had happened to him and he was familiar with what he should do after he was informed about the money.
He also said that as he is working in Kuala Lumpur, he had also claimed his transportation fees from one Hj Musa for the sum of RM650 soon after he had cast his vote.
Karim had filed his election petition to challenge the result in Kimanis in GE14, on June 18 at the High Court here.
He had named Anifah @ Haniff Amman as the first respondent while the returning officer (RO) and Election Commission (EC) as second and third respondents respectively.
Counsels Syaiful Sufyyan Sidin and Wilson Lai Wai Shing also represented Karim. Anifah was defended by counsels Hj Ansari Abdullah, Peter Lee Kong Chung, Roland Cheng, Rizwandean Bukhary Bin M. Borhan, Safrin Saleh Bin Nain, Muhamad Amirul Amin, Tengku Ahmad Fuad Tengku Ahmad and Wilson Chang Khai Sim while the RO and EC were represented by counsels Muammar Julkarnain, Faizal Sarbi and Abdul Fikry Jaafar Bin Abdullah.
The trial resumes today.