Kota Kinabalu: Parti Kebangsaan Sabah (PKS), which claims it is confident of forming the next State government will contest 60 seats in the Nov 29 state election.
Its President Dato’ Jismit Japong said they decided to increase by five seats due to high demand from potential candidates, besides being confident of winning 38 to 40 seats.
He said 40 candidates are from his Gemilang Sabah Group.
“We have professionals like doctors, engineers, lawyers and educators, among others, as candidates.
Jismit will be contesting in Klias.
“We have launched PKS’ manifesto with 21 pledges that promises greater well-being and tangible benefits for the people of Sabah. He said a PKS government would bring down the fuel price to RM1 per litre for both petrol and diesel because Sabah is in rich oil and gas.
The manifesto also includes free education from kindergarten to university, establishing special financing schemes for Sabahan entrepreneurs, building a state-owned hospital in every parliamentary constituency equipped with modern facilities, and constructing between 500 and 1,000 housing units per constituency annually.
Other pledges, he said, include monthly financial aid of RM500 for Sabahans without fixed income, developing modern transportation infrastructure such as high-speed rail, LRT, and monorail systems, setting up a Sabah state-owned airline, and expediting land ownership application processes.
Jismit said the new State government would have 16 ministers and 32 deputy ministers. As Chief Minister, he plans to introduce four new ministries — Ministry of Mineral Resources, the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Health and Ministry of Corporate Affairs.
PKS, once it forms the Government, would bar non-Sabah based parties from participating in state politics, stressing that Sabah’s future must be determined by local leadership.
“Sabah has long been governed by non-Sabah-based parties, leaving the state lagging behind in development and its people trapped in poverty,” he said.
