THE Federal Court has rejected an application by former foreign affairs minister Anifah Aman for a stay on the Kimanis by-election.

The apex court today heard the application in Putrajaya for a review of its own decision on December 2 to nullify the Sabah parliamentary seat’s results in GE14 last year and to order a re-election.

Anifah was the incumbent.

“We have considered the argument and we are at the opinion that no special circumstances (exist) for the court to exercise in granting of stay,” Federal Court judge Mohd Zawawi Salleh said today.

Other judges on the panel were Vernon Ong, Abdul Rahman Sebli, Zaleha Yusof and Zabariah Mohd Yusof.

Meanwhile, the Election Commission secretariat said in a statement the federal court also awarded RM30,000 in costs to each respondent.

With today’s decision, the Kimanis by-election will proceed on the dates set by the Election Commission, with nomination day to be held this Saturday and polling on January 18.

Anifah applied for the stay order on the by-election, pending hearing and disposal of a review application on the court’s decision to declare the results in GE14 null and void.

The court today set Friday to hear this matter.

The Federal Court upheld the election court’s decision in August that the seat’s results be nullified but dismissed allegations of bribery and corruption by the election petitioner, Warisan candidate Karim Bujang.

Anifah was a three-term MP for Kimanis and won the seat last year by 156 votes over Karim.

Election court judge Lee Heng Cheong in August said the ballot boxes showed signs of manipulation, that that additional voting papers were detected and the returning officer at certain polling stations failed to provide Form 13 that was used to verify the number of ballots counted.

Anifah quit Umno in September last year. – December 30, 2019.