Barisan Nasional (BN) is in the process of identifying suitable candidates to fill the vacancies for the Kinabatangan parliamentary seat and the Lamag state seat in Sabah, previously held by the late Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin.

BN Secretary-General Datuk Seri Zambry Abdul Kadir said preliminary discussions have been held with BN Sabah’s top leadership to ensure the coalition retains both seats.

He added that BN Sabah has full autonomy in selecting the candidates, and once finalised, the names will be presented to BN Chairman Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.

The Election Commission (EC) will hold a special meeting on Dec 16 to discuss matters related to the by-elections for Kinabatangan and Lamag following Bung Moktar’s passing on Dec 5.

In the recent 17th Sabah state election on Nov 29, Bung Moktar, who also served as Sabah BN Chairman, successfully defended the Lamag seat with a 153-vote majority in a six-cornered contest.

At the national level, Bung Moktar began his political journey as the Member of Parliament for Kinabatangan after winning the seat in the 10th General Election in 1999, serving six consecutive terms.