KINABATANGAN: The Barisan Nasional election machinery has been reminded not to be complacent during the Kinabatangan parliamentary and Lamag state by-elections.
In making the call, Umno supreme council member Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Maslan (pic) said Barisan must avoid being overly confident as Warisan has strong contenders.
“I see the two candidates they have put forward. Nevertheless, our candidates are no less capable than theirs,” he told reporters here yesterday.
Ahmad said he attended a coordination meeting involving Barisan election machinery, party leaders and candidates on Thursday night, revealing that he will oversee the Barisan war room secretariat for the by-elections.
He said the meeting focused on resolving last-minute operational and logistical issues, including polling district arrangements and nomination logistics in areas such as Kuamut and Sukau.
Ahmad also thanked Gabungan Rakyat Sabah for its commitment to assist Barisan’s campaign and expressed appreciation to other parties for not fielding candidates which would split votes.
On campaign logistics, he said Umno machinery from outside Sabah would not be deployed.
Instead, 24 Umno divisions across the state have been assigned as “adopted families” to support the 27 polling districts in Kinabatangan.
Ahmad, who is Pontian MP, said the vast Kinabatangan parliamentary constituency posed significant challenges in terms of travel and communication.
Despite that, he expressed satisfaction with the Barisan machinery’s level of preparedness and gave the thumbs up to both Barisan candidates – Naim Kurniawan Moktar for Kinabatangan and Mohd Ismail Ayob, popularly known as Miha, for Lamag.
