KIULU:
Incumbent Datuk Wilfred Madius Tangau is not defending the Tuaran parliamentary seat and gives way to UPKO Deputy. President Datuk Wilfred Bumburing to stand in the March 8 general election. “I am giving way to Datuk Seri Panglima Wilfred Bumburing to represent UPKO to contest in the Tuaran parliamentary seat as this is the decision of the party leadership,” he said during a seminar at the UPKO divisional office here yesterday. Madius said Bumburing, being the Deputy President of UPKO, would be able to carry on the struggle of the party more effectively if he is one of our elected representatives either in the State Assembly or Parliament. “I know there are some among our grassroots supporters who may find it hard to accept, but we should look at this change in a positive manner for the sake of our people and the party that represents our community and our interest. UPKO members should be professional and disciplined in their status and standing and should put the interest of the party first,” he said. “I therefore call upon all of you, branch leaders, to carry this message to all our members and supporters and carry on with the party’s struggle by ensuring that Datuk Wilfred Bumburing will be a victorious UPKO candidate and that UPKO Kiulu will give him even more number of votes than ever before,” said the party’s Secretary-General. About 150 grassroots leaders comprising the “Ketua Pusat Mengundi,” leaders from all UPKO Branches, The Komulakan, Wanita, Pemuda and Divisional Committee Members attended the one-day seminar. Bumburing, who also spoke at the function, expressed his utmost gratitude to Madius and UPKO members in Kiulu for their willingness to continue to support him as the BN candidate in Tuaran in the coming election. He said the wisdom behind the decision of the party leadership to have a different candidate for Tuaran constituency was done with great care and consideration. “I would like to extend my greatest appreciation and unfathomable thanks to Datuk Madius Tangau for giving me the chance to defend the Tuaran seat on behalf of UPKO and BN. I know it was a hard decision to make and it was even a harder issue to be understood by UPKO members in Kiulu,” he said. “I may not be able to catch up with the aggressiveness of Datuk Madius or be even on par with his academic qualifications and oratorical skills, but with your support and commitment, we would all be able to proudly defend the Tuaran seat for BN-UPKO and thereafter, I assure you, I will try to continue to be a good ‘Wakil Rakyat’ for everyone, including Kiulu, and to continue and pursue whatever socioeconomic programs that UPKO Kiulu have in place and have drawn up to be carried out in the future. “All the programs that have been put in place by Datuk Madius, which would bring good benefits to our community, will be continued and will be improved and synchronized with Tamparuli and Sulaman.” Bumburing also revealed that Madius has agreed to accept the post as BN Tuaran Election Operation Director and he will also be the proposer for his candidacy on nomination day. In .another development, Madius urged UPKO members and supporters in the Kiulu state constituency to uphold their loyalty to the party by voting for all Barisan Nasional candidates come polling day on March 8. Madius said the focus of our struggle should be the party and not the individuals. “UPKO is a party that represents our Kadazandusun-Murut community and the struggles of the party continue regardless of who is picked by the party to contest in any election,” he added.
