[Ada dua perkara yang begitu penting dalam berita ini. Pertama keputusan Hakim Muhammad Kamil mungkin mempunyai implikasi yang lebih luas terhadap semua kawasan pilihanraya negeri Sabah kerana terdapat rujukkan atau kesimpulan pada kawasan yang selainnya di negeri itu (Chong Eng Leong -PBS). Kedua - terdapat lebih kurang 96,000 pendatang asing Filipina dan Indonesia di negeri Sabah yang berjumlah 2.44 juta orang itu. Takkan mereka berada dan menyumbang undi di Likas sahaja...... Ini bermakna semua senarai daftar perlu dikaji semula kerana kerajaan yang terpilih adalah tidak sah sebenarnya..... - Editor]

8/6/2001 Phantom Votes Nullify State Poll - Malaysian Judge

KUALA LUMPUR, June 8 (Reuters) - The High Court in Malaysia's eastern state of Sabah ruled on Friday a 1999 state election in one of its constituencies null and void, saying non-existent voters rendered its electoral roll illegal.

A report by state news agency Bernama described Justice Muhammad Kamil Awang's decision as a landmark ruling, quoting him as saying he was convinced phantom voters and non-citizens on the Likas constituency's roll "may well be the tip of the iceberg".

"It cannot be denied that the registration of voters in the Likas electoral roll was in contravention of the law. No one, including the government department or institution, is above the law," he said.

The judge said the Election Commission failed to wipe phantom voters' names from the rolls despite objections raised at a public inquiry well before the election.

Former chief minister Yong Teck Lee retained the seat for Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad's Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition, defeating among others petitioner Chong Eng Leong of opposition party Parti Bersatu Sabah.

Chong told Reuters by telephone the judge's ruling might have wider implications for state constituencies in Sabah, on Borneo island.

"There are references or inferences for the rest of the state," he said of the decision, which cannot be appealed.

Bernama quoted state election officer Mohamad Yunus out of Sabah as saying he would await notice of the court's decision, which would pave the way for a Likas by-election within 60 days following a declaration of the seat's vacancy.

A by-election in Likas would not directly affect Mahathir's rule or that of his coalition at either state or federal levels, where it enjoys big majorities.

Mahathir need not call national elections before 2004.

Bernama also quoted Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi as saying his ruling coalition accepted the outcome.

"The BN accepts the decision and we will abide by it," he told reporters in the administrative capital of Putrajaya on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur.

Malaysia has three federal territories and 13 states. The states are governed by assemblies whose deputies have powers to legislate on land and water use, religion and other matters.

(C) Reuters Limited 2001.

http://livenews.lycosasia.com/cgi-bin/get.pl? pi_news_id=716233&pi_ctry=my&pi_lang=en

Malaysia Judge: Phantom Voters Helped UMNO Win Sabah Seat

KUALA LUMPUR (AP)--A judge on Friday voided the election of a government candidate in a Malaysian state parliament, ruling that he won with the support of "phantom voters."

The landmark ruling validates years of complaints by opposition leaders, who say that thousands of illegal immigrants living in the state of Sabah vote in state elections.

The ruling paves way for a by-election to replace Yong Teck Lee, a former chief minister of Sabah state, who had won the division of Likas for Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad's United Malays National Organization, or UMNO, in 1999 general elections by a large margin of 4,962 votes.

The National Front coalition which is dominated by UMNO was elected to power in the poll, and a by-election for Likas doesn't affect its ability to govern even if it loses.

Declaring Yong's victory null and void, High Court Justice Muhammad Kamil Awang said Friday that it may have been secured with the votes from people ineligible to vote, the national news agency Bernama reported.

"The instances of non-citizens and phantom voters in the electoral roll, as disclosed at the trial, may well be the tip of the iceberg," Bernama quoted Muhammad as saying in a written judgment. "It cannot be denied that the registration of voters in the Likas electoral roll was in contravention of the law."

Sabah's opposition claims that the National Front uses thousands of illegal immigrants to secure votes for their candidates. Sabah is on the northeast tip of Borneo island, it shares borders with Indonesia and is near the Philippines.

Joseph Pairin Kitingan, leader of the opposition Parti Bersatu Sabah, said last year that his party traced about 96,000 illegal immigrants from Philippines and Indonesia who were registered as voters.

Nationals of both countries frequently sneak into Malaysia seeking better paying jobs and social conditions. Including foreigners, the population in the state is about 2.44 million, according to latest census data.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires 08-06-01

0817GMT

DJ CORRECT:Seat Was Won By Sabah Progressive Party, Not UMNO

The ruling paves way for a by-election to replace Yong Teck Lee, a former chief minister of Sabah state, who had won the division of Likas for the Sabah Progressive Party in 1999 general elections by a margin of 4,962 votes. The party is a member of the National Front coalition led by Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad's United Malays National Organization, or UMNO.

(In an item that ran at 0817 GMT (4:17 a.m. EDT) the name of Yong's party was misstated.)