THE by-election for the Batu Sapi parliamentary seat in Sabah, caused by the untimely death of respected former Law minister Datuk Liew Vui Keong, is scheduled for Dec 5. Nomination Day is Nov 23.
Given the fact that the constituency is a Covid-19 red zone and Sabah’s tally of cumulative cases on Nov 2 was 15,962 with 117 deaths, it is understandable that calls are being made to cancel or postpone the by-election. There are fears that, as after the September state election in Sabah, the nation will again see a serious spike in the number of Covid-19 afflictions.