2 theSun | FRIDAY FEBRUARY 13 2009

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BERNAMAPIX
Respect decision of
By-elections
BN leadership, Bukit may be held
Gantang Umno urged simultaneously
IPOH: The Bukit Gantang Umno division has the KUALA TERENGGANU: The
right to make suggestions but like other Barisan Election Commission has not
Nasional component parties should respect the dismissed the possibility of by-
decision of the top BN leadership on the candidate elections for the Bukit Gantang
for the division’s parliamentary by-election. parliamentary seat in Perak and
Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Dep- Bukit Selambau state seat in Ke-
artment Senator T. Murugiah, who was a former dah being held simultaneously.
youth chief of the People’s Progressive Party EC chairman Tan Sri Abdul
(PPP), was commenting on Bukit Gantang Umno Aziz Mohd Yusof said a decision
wanting a candidate from the division. was expected after a meeting
On Wednesday, Bukit Gantang Umno head today to study and discuss docu-
Datuk Rosli Husin declared that the division would ments relating to the vacancies
not compromise on its stand after its sacrifices for both seats.
for the past 23 years in making way for other BN He said the Federal Constitu-
component parties to field candidates. tion stated that a by-election
The by-election is forced following the death could be held only if the EC was
on Monday of Bukit Gantang MP Roslan Shaharum satisfied that a state assembly or
parliamentary seat was lawfully
of PAS from a heart attack.
Murugiah, who comes from Trong, said he
Award recipients ... vacant.
had been appointed PPP’s by-election direc- DEPUTY Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak looks on as his wife Datin Sri Rosmah “For Bukit Gantang, the MP
tor for the constituency. “We will open three Mansor congratulates former energy, water and communications minister Tun Dr Lim Keng has passed away, but Bukit
operations rooms in Trong, Changkat Jering and Yaik who was awarded the Panglima Negara Bintang Sarawak (PNBS), which carries the Selambau is a different issue
Kuala Sepetang, and mobilise more than 500 party title “Datuk Seri”. The award was bestowed by the Yang di-Pertua of Sarawak Tun Abang and we need to gather detailed
members throughout the state,” he said. Muhammad Salahuddin Abang Barieng in conjunction with the state’s 45 Years of Progress information and documents to
In the March 8 general election, Roslan beat in Malaysia. International Trade and Industry Minister Muhyiddin Yassin was also a recipient make a decision.
BN’s Datuk Seri Azim Mohd Zabidi and independ- of the same, while Najib was awarded the Darjah Utama Yang Amat Mulia Bintang Kenyalang “If we can established that
ent candidate M. Murganan with a 1,566-vote Sarawak which carries the title “Datuk Patinggi” in a ceremony at Astana Negri yesterday. the seat is vacant, we will go
majority. – Bernama ahead with a by-election. If not,
the elected representative will
remain,” Abdul Aziz said here on

Federal Court reserves

Wednesday night. – Bernama

Reduction
in electricity

decision on Pensiangan polls tariff lauded

by Kristene Silva Marie
newsdesk@thesundaily.com

KUALA LUMPUR: The Japanese

KOTA KINABALU: The Federal
Court here yesterday reserved
decision on an appeal by Parti
Bersatu Rakyat Sabah (PBRS)
president Tan Sri Joseph Kurup
to quash the nullification of his
election to the Pensiangan par-
liamentary seat in the March 8
general election.
Appeals Court President Tan
Sri Alauddin Mohd Sheriff, who
sat with Chief Justice of Malaya
Datuk Arifin Zakaria and Federal
Court Judge Datuk Nik Hashim
Abd Rahman, said a judgment
would be delivered on a date to
be fixed.
Kurup, represented by leading
counsel Mariati Robert, wanted
the country’s highest court to set
aside a decision of the Election
Court declaring the result of the
Pensiangan election null and
void.
Kurup won the seat unop-
posed on nomination day in the
12th general election after the
returning officer rejected the
nomination papers of Danny
Anthony Andipai of Parti
Keadilan Rakyat and another
candidate.
He was subsequently ap-
pointed deputy rural and regional
development minister.
Andipai then petitioned the
Election Court to nullify the elec-
tion result, naming Kurup and
the returning officer Bubudan OT
Majalu as respondents.
Election Court judge David
Wong Tak Wah, in allowing
the petition on Sept 8 last year,
ruled that the wrongful rejection
of Andipai’s nomination papers
had breached his constitutional
right to take part in the election
and the written law relating to
the conduct of the election.
In his 36-page judgment,
Wong said the decision of the
Sabah Election Commission
deputy director to accept Andi-
pai’s nomination papers was
final and could not be overruled
by Majalu under the pretext of
there having been an objection
during the objection period.
In making his decision, the
deputy director was exercising a
power provided for by law and
Bubudan’s decision to uphold
the objection was a wrong one,
Wong ruled.
Senior federal counsel Firoz
Hussein Ahmad Jamaluddin, in
his submission yesterday, said
the Election Court judge had
failed to observe that Andipai
had not complied with the law
when arguing Section 32B of the
Election Offences Act.
He said it was stipulated that
nomination papers should be
submitted between 9am and
10am, but Andipai had sub-
mitted his papers at 10.25am.
– Bernama
Chamber of Trade & Industry
Malaysia yesterday lauded the
government’s decision to reduce
the electricity tariff by an aver-
age 3.7%.
Its secretary-general H.
Kitaoka said “it is one of the
measures listed in an emergency
proposal submitted to the gov-
ernment to help manufacturers
tide over the global economic
slowdown”.
Asked whether the reduction
was up to expectations, Kitaoka
said: “I cannot say for sure
because I don’t have data from
any of the users.”
Taichi Noda, general adviser
for the chamber, said the effort
to reduce the tariff “is much
appreciated as it is a difficult
decision to make”.
He said some companies
were going through worse times
than 1997. “This reduction will
be helpful.”