He had intended to stand against Sabah BN chief Musa Aman in the Sungai Sibuga state seat, to keep a promise he made two years ago.
But on nomination day his proposer and seconder went missing. “I felt it was all set up to stop me,” he told FMT.
But he felt that his failure to be nominated for Sungai Sibuga was a blessing in disguise, as the opposition party Warisan Sabah was contesting there.
“Warisan has a chance to win the seat against BN. Its influence is growing and BN is wary of its effect on their voters,” he said.
But Jufazli, 27, was prepared for underhanded tactics by his opponents. He had bought three sets of nomination forms. Abandoning his plans for Sungai Sibuga, he opted to file in Tanjong Papat, Sandakan, and managed to get a proposer and seconder to contest as an independent.
He will take on BN’s Raymond Tan Shu Kiah and Frankie Poon Ming Fung of DAP. Tan, a deputy chief minister, had won the seat in the previous election in a straight fight against Poon.
Jufazli told FMT that Tan had done little for his constituents and rarely went to the area.
Asked why he is standing as an independent despite being a DAP member, Jufazli said he had his own election machinery and also wanted to keep his promise to stand in the election.
Two years ago, he announced he would contest against Musa in Sungai Sibuga and urged his supporters to raise funds for him as he estimated he would need up to RM2 million for the campaign.
He was reported to have managed to raise at least RM100,000 but he claimed to have received more funds from generous donors, including RM30,000 from a supporter recently.
“This donor commended my decision to contest in Tanjong Papat because it is a problematic area. More than 90% of my donors allowed me to use the fund,” he said.
Jufazli, who is from Semporna, gained notoriety after making various allegations against Musa in Facebook posts.
Last year, he was arrested after posting a video on Facebook accusing the government and the Tawau Municipal Council of being responsible for the frequent fires in Tawau.
Jufazli joined DAP last June but declared in November that he would be taking time off from all party matters to pursue his PhD in political science in Kuala Lumpur.
Asked about his chances in Tanjong Papat, he said Tan’s absence on the ground would be to his benefit. “Our momentum is growing and I am confident we will get the Chinese votes too,” he said.
Click here to get live updates throughout the GE14 season