Api Api Candidate Never Claimed To Be Lawyer Says Sabah Pkr

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State PKR chief Mustapha Sakmud blames West Malaysian party leaders for 'exaggerating' Thonny Chee's credentials in past campaigns.
PKR’s Thonny Chee is in a five-cornered race for the Api-Api seat which has been held by the party since 2013. (Facebook pic)PETALING JAYA: Pakatan Harapan’s candidate for the Api-Api seat never claimed to be a lawyer, Sabah PKR chief Mustapha Sakmud said following questions about the candidate’s credentials
Mustapha said the misconception was caused by central PKR leaders from West Malaysia who had exaggerated Thonny Chee’s credentials in past campaign events, The Borneo Post reported.
“Chee has never once described himself as a lawyer. He studied law at university, but he does not practise. The misunderstanding likely arose from some leaders who introduced him as a lawyer during campaigning,” he said.
The Sabah PKR chief said Chee was vetted before his nomination as a candidate, and that many law graduates did not go on to practise after graduating.
Chee contested the Kudat parliamentary seat in the 2022 general election but performed poorly, coming in fourth in a five-cornered race.
Independent candidate Verdon Bahanda won the seat with a 1,967-vote majority ahead of his closest rival, Gabungan Rakyat Sabah’s Ruddy Awah.
Chee is now in yet another five-cornered race, this time for the Api-Api state seat which has been held by PKR since 2013.
Former Sabah PKR chief Christina Liew first won the seat for the party that year. The ex-deputy chief minister retained it for two more terms but was dropped by her party in this state election. - FMT

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