BEAUFORT: Barisan Nasional (BN) is set to snag the Pujut constituency after its DAP assemblyman Dr Ting Tiong Choon was disqualified from the Sarawak state assembly.
Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said he was confident Pujut would come under BN if a by-election was called.
"When I became the deputy prime minister and just three days after my appointment, I made a commitment to visit Sarawak every two weeks.
"I didn't just simply go there... I went to show my support for the people. In the Sarawak state election, BN won 72 out of the 83 seats.
"In the (event of ) a by-election for Pujut, I am confident we can get 73 seats when we win. If we can do this in Sarawak, we can also win more (seats) in Sabah," he said at the meet-the-people programme here.
The motion to disqualify Dr Ting was tabled by State International Trade and E-Commerce Minister Datuk Seri Wong Soon Koh following allegations that Dr Ting had dual citizenship and that he was declared a bankrupt twice in Australia in 2012.
Seventy state assemblymen had voted in favour of the motion and 10 others voted otherwise.
His disqualification was based on Article 17(1)(g) of the State Constitution of Sarawak.