[ad_1]
KOTA KINABALU: Independent candidate Rubin Balang, who won the Kemabong inner seat, has pledged his support for the Perikatan Nasional (PN) coalition made up of PPBM, STAR and SAPP.
His move gives PN 18 seats, one more than the Electoral Commission (EC) initially announced on the results of the Sabah elections last night.
It also means that the flexible Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) coalition – comprising PN, Barisan Nasional and PBS – now has 39 seats, with BN contributing 14 seats and PBS seven.
Rubin caught the attention of the media when he joined a press conference by Sabah PN chief Hajiji Noor at a hotel here early this morning.
Speaking to reporters later, Rubin, who was a Kemabong assemblyman for five terms from 1994 to 2018 under Umno, said he was supporting PN and anyone proposed by the coalition as chief minister.
Hajiji, when asked why Rubin was present, said that “it is because he supports PN”, to the loud applause of the fans.
Rubin won with a majority of 1,012 votes after obtaining 4,214 votes against Upko’s closest contender, Lucas Umbul, who obtained 3,202 votes, in a six-way fight.
Meanwhile, two other independent candidates had also won yesterday, namely Masiung Banah, who managed to retain the Kuamut seat, and Rudy Awah, who secured the Pitas seat, beating the contenders BN and Warisan, among others.
However, it is unclear if the duo will also follow in Rubin’s footsteps.
It is well known that Masiung was one of 16 assemblymen who left Warisan to side with former Chief Minister Musa Aman in a failed attempt to overthrow the Warisan-led state government last July.
Musa’s attempt to return as CM triggered snap state elections, and Warisan President Shafie Apdal decided to dissolve Sabah’s legislative assembly.
Click here for the latest news from Sabah surveys
