Warisan gives DAP mandate to decide parliamentary candidate
SEMPORNA: Parti Warisan Sabah (Warisan) is giving the mandate to DAP to decide on its candidate for the Sandakan parliamentary by-election next month.
Warisan president Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal, who is also chief minister, said he would meet DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng to discuss the by-election today.
“We will discuss the byelection because the Sandakan parliamentary seat belongs to DAP.
“They (DAP) will decide the candidate to be fielded, and Warisan will ensure its machinery works hard to bring victory,” he said after launching the Warisan general meeting here yesterday.
Shafie, who is Semporna member of parliament, expressed confidence that the party could win the by-election if the election machinery continued to work hard and engage the rakyat.
The Sandakan parliamentary seat fell vacant when its incumbent, Datuk Stephen Wong, 65, who was state health and people’s wellbeing minister and state DAP chairman, died of heart attack on March 28.
In the 14th General Election, Wong defended his parliamentary seat with 19,094 votes, beating Barisan Nasional candidate Datuk Lim Ming Hoo, who received 8,996 votes.
On Friday, the Election Commission announced the Sandakan parliamentary by-election would be held on May 11, with its nomination date set for April 27 and early polling fixed on May 7. Meanwhile, when asked on the appointment of Datuk Hajiji Mohd Noor as the state Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) coordinator on Saturday, Shafie said it was the party’s right and all quarters needed to accept it.
He said the Warisan-led government would continue to work with Bersatu at the federal level.
Earlier, Shafie, who won uncontested the Semporna Warisan division chief post, urged all delegates to apply positive values in their struggle and to strengthen the party’s unity.
“Although Warisan is young, we must learn from the fall of Parti Pertubuhan Kebangsaan Sabah Bersatu, Umno, Parti Bersatu Sabah and Parti Bersatu Rakyat Jelata Sabah, because of powergreedy leaders.”