Anifah confirms won’t contest Kimanis by-election but to return in GE15

KOTA KINABALU, Dec 19 — Datuk Seri Anifah Aman today confirmed that he will not be contesting in the Kimanis by-election next month.

Anifah however said he would contest in the 15th general elections (GE15).

“This is an emotional moment for me not to contest in this by-election. I reaffirm my belief that the carelessness of the Election Commission had caused undue inconvenience to the rakyat in Kimanis and unwise expenditure of taxpayer’s money.

“I will, however, contest again in P176 Kimanis in GE15,” he said in a statement.

Anifah said that he would continue to seek legal recourse from the Election Commission (EC) whose mistake led to the results of his constituency being null and void.

In an election petition brought forward by the Parti Warisan Sabah candidate for the GE14 Kimanis constituency Datuk Karim Bujang, the Election Court agreed that the EC were non-compliant to the standard operating procedure in submitting several forms that affected the votes of over 300 ballots.

Given that Anifah had won with a narrow margin of 156 votes, the court declared Anifah’s win as null and void.

Anifah later appealed to the Federal Court but it went with the earlier decision, paving way for a by-election.

“Though I strongly disagree with the Federal Court decision, I, however, accept the finality of the court process accorded to me.

“As a victim of the ineptitude and carelessness of the Election Commission, I as advised by my lawyers will institute legal proceedings against the Election Commission for damages in the days ahead,” he said.

Anifah said he was thankful for Umno and Barisan Nasional for giving him the opportunity to serve the constituents of Kimanis for three terms and was proud to represent Sabah and Malaysia as Foreign Minister of Malaysia for nine years.

“In the coming days, I will be focusing my efforts to unite the various political forces in Sabah and work towards the wellbeing of the people. 

“There are numerous challenges facing the country and if it is not addressed properly it can threaten the security and the well-being of the state and country,” he said.