KOTA KINABALU, May 3 — Parti Warisan Sabah’s Sepanggar candidate Datuk Azis Jamman still believes that he can win the Sepanggar seat, even after incumbent Datuk Jumat Idris endorsed his rival, Datuk Seri Abdul Rahman Dahlan.
The Warisan youth (Wira) chief said that Jumat’s endorsement of the Barisan Nasional (BN) candidate does not mean that all is well with the Umno division, nor will it affect his chances with Sepanggar constituents.
“I’ve said many times: It’s not about the candidate. The people on the ground are thirsty for change. That’s the most important thing. Even if Jumat himself were contesting, Warisan would still put up a fight,” he said.
Azis was asked to comment on Jumat’s statement recently about throwing his support behind BN candidate Abdul Rahman, who was his replacement after he was suspended as an Umno member in 2015 for criticising Chief Minister Tan Sri Musa Aman in a Facebook post.
Jumat is seen to have good grassroots support and a thumbs-up from him could mean more votes in Abdul Rahman’s favour.
Certain quarters within Umno had grumbled about the leadership choosing a candidate who is not from within the division. Subsequently, seven committee members and over a hundred members left the division.
“Jumat is definitely a threat, there’s no denying that. He has his own supporters, but if we look at Sepanggar at large, the people are rejecting BN and Umno. They don’t look at who you are,” said Azis, who admitted that support from Jumat would have also helped Warisan’s campaign.
“But bear in mind, not every one of his supporters will also join him. I also know there’s still political infighting within Umno. We may be on the outside, but we know because we still have friends on the inside. But that’s fine, we’ll concentrate on reaching out to as many people as possible,” said Azis.
Sepanggar, just adjacent to Kota Kinabalu, is a mixed-race seat of 62,415 voters, with 52 per cent Muslim natives. The majority of them are in the Karambunai state constituency, while the non-Muslim natives or KDM are the majority in the Inanam state seat followed by Chinese and Muslim natives.
In the last election, BN won the Sepanggar and Karambunai seats but lost the Inanam seat to PKR’s Dr Roland Chia.
This time, Abdul Rahman will be facing Azis, Jeffrey Kumin from Sabah Progressive Party, as well as Parti Cinta Sabah’s Robert Sopining.
His biggest fight will likely be against Azis, an equally fiery and outspoken Semporna native who left Umno in 2016 to join his uncle, former Umno vice-president, Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal.
“There was also some taIk that I am an outsider from Semporna. But if we are talking about outsiders, BN is even worse. Jainab is from Tawau, and Rahman Dahlan is from Tuaran but was sent to Kota Belud, and then again kicked to Sepanggar.
“When I go to the ground, people just say, ‘Jangan lompat.’ They said they will spit in my face if I do. I think this is a sign that they don’t care where the candidate is from, only that we don’t become party hoppers,” he said.
Azis was met on walkabout in Pekan Telipok today in the Inanam constituency along with Warisan PKR candidate Kenny Chua.
People on the ground reacted warmly to them, coming up to shake their hands and offer them well-wishes. Some shouted “Ubah” when they passed by.
“I think this is a good sign that change is coming, not only in Sepanggar, but all over Sabah. Now Umno as a party is no longer fighting for the people, they are fighting for the survival of Najib Razak,” he said.
