PAS to skip Sg Kandis by-election

SHAH ALAM: PAS will not contest the Sungai Kandis state by-election on Aug 4, said its Selangor election director Roslan Shahir Mohd Shahir.
He said the party made the decision soon after Umno decided to field a candidate for the by-election, the nomination for which is on Saturday.
"A formal announcement will be made by PAS secretary-general Datuk Takiyuddin Hassan," he said in a WhatsApp message to Bernama.
Roslan Shahir said PAS was sticking by its principle that a straight fight in the by-election would give the opposition a better chance of victory.
Asked whether PAS would back Umno in the by-election, he said that issue did not arise because PAS only decided not to contest and that the details would be disclosed by Takiyuddin.
Selangor Umno had said that Umno would announce its candidate tomorrow.
PKR is expected to announce its candidate tonight.
The Sungai Kandis seat became vacant after the assemblyman, Mat Shuhaimi Shafiei of PKR, died of lymphoma cancer on July 2.
Mat Shuhaimi, a former political secretary of former Selangor mentri besar Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali, retained the seat (formerly known as Sri Muda) for the third term in the 14th General Election on May 9 by polling 23,998 votes to beat Datuk Kamaruzzaman Johari of BN-Umno (11,518 votes); Mohd Yusof Abdullah of PAS (7,573) and Hanafiah Husin of Parti Rakyat Malaysia (76). — Bernama