Sabah State Reform Party (STAR) chairperson Dr Jeffrey Kitingan said he will contest in the Keningau parliamentary constituency in the coming general election.

He also did not rule out re-contesting in the Bingkor state seat.

“I will contest in Keningau. I’m hoping he (his elder brother Joseph Pairin Kitingan) will not be going for the seat any more. He has served the constituency for 30 years. I think it’s time for me to bring Sabah issues to parliament,” he told Bernama in an interview in Kota Kinabalu recently.

Pairin is PBS president and Sabah Deputy Chief Minister as well as Member of Parliament for Keningau and state assemblyperson for Tambunan.

In the 2008 general election, Jeffrey had contested against Pairin for the Keningau parliamentary seat but was defeated.   

He also contested the Bingkor state seat but lost to BN candidate Justine Guka by 171 votes in the four-corner contest involving two other independent candidates - Victor Leornadus and Uling@Thomas Angan.

Asked on why he decided to contest the seat again, he said: “As much as I wish that should not happen, I felt the ground swells very much for change.”

“In other words, they want something new. It has nothing to do with family, more to do with politics,” he said.

Jeffrey, a Harvard graduate, have changed political parties a number of times in the past two decades - being a former member of Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS), Parti Bersatu Rakyat Sabah (PBRS), Parti Angkatan Keadilan Rakyat (Akar Bersatu) and United Pasokmomogun Kadazandusun Murut Organisation (Upko).

He also joined PKR and was later appointed as a party vice-president until his resignation from the position on Oct 28, 2009.

- Bernama