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PETALING JAYA: The King agreed to an Emergency Proclamation declaration to cancel and postpone the Batu Sapi by-elections in Sabah that were scheduled for December 5, following a meeting with the Prime Minister.
Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah met with Tan Sri Muhyddin Yassin for an hour at 4 p.m. yesterday, according to a statement issued by the Comptroller of the Royal House of Istana Negara Datuk Ahmad Fadil Shamsuddin.
“Muhyiddin presented his advice to the King after a decision made at a Cabinet meeting.
“After listening to the Prime Minister’s explanations and after being satisfied with the briefings of the Chief Secretary of the Government Tan Sri Zuki Ali, the Attorney General Tan Sri Idrus Harun, the Director General of Health Tan Sri Dr. Noor Hisham Abdullah and the Chairman of the Election Commission Datuk Abdul Ghani Salleh, His Majesty saw the need for a Declaration for an Emergency Proclamation under Article 150 (1) of the Federal Constitution to cancel the by-elections of Batu Sapi, ”said Ahmad Fadil.
The proclamation also means that any proceedings regarding the Batu Sapi by-elections will be suspended to prevent another wave of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The by-elections will be held on another date.
Ahmad Fadil said the king was concerned about public safety following the sharp increase in cases after the Sabah state elections on September 26.
“His Majesty believes that it is necessary to cancel the by-elections and postpone them to another date,” he said.
Ahmad Fadil said the King also took into account the number of registered voters living outside of Batu Sapi and that they would have to return to cast their votes.
According to the EC, there are 32,962 voters in Batu Sapi, 3,170 of whom live outside the constituency, including in Sarawak and Peninsular Malaysia.
It is also estimated that 16,000 voters do not have full addresses, which would have made voting by mail difficult.
The King also advised the people to remain vigilant and contribute to helping the government stop the spread of the disease.
He also expressed gratitude and appreciation for the avant-garde and extended his condolences to those who lost loved ones to Covid-19.
“His Majesty also called on all Malaysians to come together to fight the pandemic,” said Ahmad Fadil.
Batu Sapi’s by-elections were called after the death of his deputy Datuk Liew Vui Keong on October 2 due to a lung infection.
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