Sabah PKR polls: Parachute candidates a threat
Tamparuli assemblyman, Wilfred Bumburing, although a PKR lawmaker, is not a member of the party, and could influence KDM members in some divisions
Luke Rintod, FMT
Looming PKR elections in Sabah have so far failed to generate much interest but there is talk that the party has seen an uptick in applications for membership and challenges to the status quo may come from the young.
Unlike previous party elections when there was an air of frenetic activity and lobbying, back-biting and undisguised manipulation, this year’s affair in contrast has a staid look about it with little hint of scandal or even spirit for that matter.
Perhaps it is because the general elections are over and there is little to gain.
One thing is certain Sabah PKR has a lot of handwork to do between now the 14th General Election due in just over four years.
Party elections at divisional levels are scheduled for the end of March, some three months before delegates from all over the country converge for PKR’s annual general meeting in Kuala Lumpur or Selangor in July.
Sabah PKR which is currently headed by Lajim Ukin, is quietly preparing for elections in most of its 25 divisions.
But expect some surprises.
Manipulative Lajim and his flamboyance is irking many quarters.
Aspirants for divisional positions are said to be from across the board including from those who just recently joined the party.
According to a party source, in some divisions in Sabah, even former supporters of Barisan Nasional who have now joined PKR, are clamoring for positions in the party, which currently rules Penang, Selangor and Kelantan in Peninsular Malaysia.
