THE voters of Sabah cast their ballots last Saturday in a “snap” state election, a mere two years after the last one. Sabah, like many other British Commonwealth jurisdictions around the world, which adopt the British Westminster model of parliamentary democracy, elects only the legislative branch of its government, which then gives rise to the executive branch. Such a state assembly has a maximum five-year term but may be dissolved earlier at any time to pave the way for a new election.

The reason for another round of elections quite soon after the last one can be attributed to a failed attempt by a former chief minister (chief executive) of Sabah, Musa Aman, who engineered a switch in allegiance of a number of assembly members from the state ruling coalition to deprive the incumbent state government of its legislative majority (and, thus, its ruling legitimacy under the Westminster system). In such a scenario, the Sabah constitution provides for the erstwhile mainly ceremonial governor of the state to either appoint a new chief minister, who in the governor’s judgment is likely to command the confidence (support) of the majority of the assembly members, or to dissolve the state assembly on the advice of the sitting chief minister. In this case, the governor chose the latter route upon the advice of the then-incumbent chief minister, Shafie Apdal, who has been Musa’s political arch rival for many long years; thus, engendering the latest Sabah election.

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