The nominations of four contenders for the National Union of Bank Employees (NUBE) branch and main committee posts are legitimate even though they were sacked by their employers last year.

Contacted today, Director-General of Trade Union (DGTU) Mohd Zubir Mohd Basri said he has accepted their nominations after consulting with the Human Resources Ministry's legal advisor.

"After checking with the legal advisor, I accepted the four nominations based on the definition of them being workmen.

"They are legitimate candidates in the upcoming elections," he added.

The doubted candidacies were those of Muhammad Fauzi Shamsuddin and J Solomon ( photo, right ) who are vying for positions as principal officer-bearers, and L Baskaran and R Sivagandi from the Penang and Kuala Lumpur branch respectively.

Four other nominations have been rejected, including Seremban-based ex-official Mohd Noor Basir after his name was found registered under the Kuala Lumpur branch.

The candidates' lists for the branch committee election and branch delegates are displayed on the ministry website .

The NUBE branch committee elections are on Sunday with Kelantan polling one day ahead, marking the first step by members in breaking a four-year impasse over the union's leadership.

Principal office-bearers will be elected on Aug 6 and 7.

'Doing our best'

Over the last few weeks, there were concerns over the legitimacy of certain candidates with regards to their employment and union membership status.

Some were also worried that this issue, if not handled properly, may lead to more legal suits after the polls.

The two main contenders, Muhammad Fauzi Shamsuddin and J Solomon, were sacked by Eon Bank Bhd and BCB Bank Bhd on Jan 6 and April 29 last year respectively.

The former was for allegedly going absent without leave whereas 10 other members including Solomon were dismissed for alleged misconduct.

Both Muhammad Fauzi and Solomon were the union president and general-secretary until Oct 29, 2001, when the latter was abruptly removed from his post. Both are key candidates representing rival factions in the upcoming NUBE polls.

Despite the piling complaints courtesy of concerned members and due to technical glitches and human error, Mohd Zubir remains optimistic.

"We're doing everything we can to ensure a smooth election. We are rectifying errors as they are brought to our attention. We can only do our best given the circumstances," he said when contacted today.

The triennial general meeting has also been brought forward to 4pm following members' complaints. It had been scheduled for 8pm on polling day.