Parti Keadilan Rakyat elections co-director Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said Pakatan Harapan has stopped all campaigning in Silam despite its candidate remaining on the ballot.
SANDAKAN: Pakatan Harapan will not resume any campaign activities for its N62 Silam candidate Abdul Halim Sidek, who has withdrawn from the race, even though his name must legally remain on the ballot paper.
Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) elections co-director Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said all machinery has been instructed to stop immediately.
“There will be no more candidate outreach to voters — none at all. But the law states that once the nomination papers are submitted, accepted and confirmed by the returning officer, the name must remain. So let it be, because that is the requirement of the law. We can’t change that.
“But for PKR and Pakatan Harapan, we are saying clearly that we have stopped all campaigning for our candidate. As for social media and online campaigning, we will manage that at the party level,” he said when met during a Pakatan campaign event at Mile 8 here, Tuesday (Nov 18).
The event was held to support Pakatan’s candidate in N50 Gum Gum, Abdul Said Pimping.
Earlier, the Election Commission (EC) confirmed that Abdul Halim will remain on the ballot paper.
EC secretary Datuk Khairul Shahril Idrus said the commission had taken note of Halim’s announcement but stressed that election laws do not allow any withdrawal after 10am on Nomination Day.
On Monday (Nov 18), Halim announced stepping aside as candidate, saying the decision was made after discussions with Pakatan’s top leadership, describing it as a personal choice made without external pressure.
Meanwhile, responding to rumours that there were Barisan Nasional’s candidate sabotaging Pakatan’s candidate in Sabah, Saifuddin stressed the importance of political stability and strong cooperation between Pakatan and Barisan, describing their party-to-party relationship as “very good”.
He said he deals directly with Umno president and Barisan chairman Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi at the federal level, while leaders in Sabah also maintain constructive ties.
Saifuddin said PKR was fielding candidates who can work effectively with Putrajaya, stressing that federal–state cooperation is essential to address Sabah’s longstanding needs, including infrastructure upgrades, electricity supply, clean water solutions and other development backlogs.
Such alignment, he added, helps secure development allocations, special grants and progress on MA63-related commitments.
When asked whether Pakatan supporters should back Gabungan Rakyat Sabah or Barisan candidates in seats where Pakatan is not contesting, Saifuddin said such decisions are best left to voters on the ground.
“It depends. We have to look at which seats were mentioned just now. So in that context, we leave it to the wisdom of the voters. Never underestimate the wisdom of the voters,” he added.
