Voter-buying causing rift within Sabah BN

KOTA KINABALU: Extraordinary things are happening in Sabah as the 13th general election looms. The old methods of splitting voters to establish communal enclaves that benefited the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition are now coming under further scrutiny by its own leaders.
Reports that opposition-held areas here are being “re-populated” to change the voter demographics, a popular tactic that has got by with a wink and a nudge in the past, has curiously alarmed certain Umno leaders who have called for an investigation.
This is the second time in recent months that the issue has received blanket exposure in the media. In September, the Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) blew the whistle on a shady voter registration drive here that it alleged was recruiting voters into the city.
The party said it had stumbled on the exercise to re-register voters from other constituencies as Kota Kinabalu residents to enable them to be voters in the Api-Api constituency.
While SAPP’s disclosure didn’t raise eyebrows, last week’s whistle-blowing by two Sabah Umno leaders of the underhand tactic has.
Sepanggar Umno chief Jumat Idris urged the police and Election Commission to investigate allegation of a political syndicate offering RM500 cash to Malay voters in Sepanggar parliamentary constituency to change their voting address to neighbouring Kota Kinabalu parliamentary constituency.
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