PAPAR, Nov 12 — Disciplinary action will be taken against the chief of Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia’s Tenom division, Datuk Rubin Balang, if found to be campaigning for his son Riduan who is an independent candidate for the Tenom parliamentary seat in the general election (GE15).
Sabah Chief Minister and Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) chairman Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor said the party had looked into the matter to determine whether Rubin, who is Kemabong assemblyman, had committed any offence against the coalition.
“We will have to see a thorough report first. Yes, we saw the photos of him with Peter Anthony, but we don’t know if he was just there or if he was involved in his son’s campaign,” said Hajiji.
“We can’t just take action over a photograph.
“We need the report to be fair to everyone. But if it is true he was openly supporting his son, then we will take action.
However, Hajiji did not want to specify the kind of action that could be taken.
The Sabah Bersatu chairman said that Riduan, who was Youth chief of Bersatu’s Tenom division, resigned from the party prior to Nomination Day in order to contest as an independent.
He, however, submitted an application to join Parti Kesejahteraan Demokratik Masyarakat (PKDM) yesterday.
Rubin was rumoured to have been eyeing the Tenom seat for himself, but it was given to Umno to contest as per the GRS-BN electoral pact.
Yesterday, Sabah BN chairman Datuk Bung Moktar urged GRS to act against Rubin for allegedly contravening the electoral pact and disrupting the goodwill between the two coalitions.
