He said that although the anti-party hopping law now made it unlikely for elected representatives to switch parties, the additional penalty and legal consequences would serve as further deterrents.

“This is to ensure that what happened in the previous state general election does not happen again. We must learn from our past mistakes and shortcomings,” he said at a TVET event here.

Zahid reminded all 45 BN candidates contesting in the Sabah polls to work hard, as the current elections provided the best chance for BN and Umno to regain dominance in Sabah.

He said the people of Sabah wanted to see BN and Umno return to power in the state, and that the coalition was committed to driving comprehensive development in Kinabatangan.

Zahid said he would help develop Kinabatangan as he is the rural and regional development minister, “which means I am the minister for villages, rural communities, and areas like Kinabatangan”.

“It is not just about completing the basic facilities of roads, electricity and water supply … we will bring much more than that to Lamag and Sukau,” he said.

Sabahans will cast their ballots on Nov 29 to elect members of the new state assembly.