No by-election for Nenggiri seat

PUTRAJAYA: The Election Commission has decided that there is no need for a by-election for the vacant Nenggiri state seat in Kelantan.
EC member Md Yusop Mansor in a statement here today said the decision was based on the notice of vacancy received from Kelantan State Legislative Assembly Speaker Datuk Abdullah Ya'kob wherein it did not ask for a by-election to be held.
He said the EC received the letter from the Speaker on July 13 following the State Assembly at its sitting on July 11 disqualifying the incumbent Mat Yusoff Abdul Ghani on account of his bankrupt status.
According to him, under the provisions of the Kelantan state constitution, a by-election need not be held if the mandate of the state government was to expire in less than two years, unless the Speaker requests in writing that a by-election be called.
"Based on the notification letter we received, the Speaker did not state the need for the vacancy to be filled," he said.
Mat Yusoff, from Barisan Nasional, was declared a bankrupt by the Insolvency Department on May 28. The Kelantan government's mandate expires in June next year. — Bernama