• UPDATED 12.52PM | Added comments by Amanah's Salahuddin Ayub and Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad. 

Economic Affairs Minister Mohamed Azmin Ali said the issue of declining support does not arise following Warisan's defeat in the Kimanis by-election.

However, he said more time is needed to convince the people that the government is narrowing the urban and rural gap.

"We see the support in Kimanis did not change much from the last general election. Warisan's candidate received almost the same votes.

"So, the decline in votes does not arise. However, as it is a rural constituency, we need more time to convince them (voters) of our efforts to narrow the urban and rural gap.

"The Warisan government will continue this effort in cooperation with the federal government," he told journalists after a walkabout at a market in Ampang today.

Yesterday, BN's Mohamad Alamin won the Kimanis by-election with a 2,029-vote majority, having polled 12,706 votes to the 10,677 votes garnered by Warisan's Karim Bujang.

In the 2018 general election, BN's Anifah Aman narrowly won the seat by a 156-vote majority, polling 11,942 votes. In that election, Karim received 11,786 votes, 1,109 votes more than yesterday's by-election. A third candidate, Harapan Rakyat's Jaafar Ismail, received 1,300 votes.

The by-election was called after the Election Court voided Anifah's win in Kimanis in 2018 on the grounds that the Election Commission (EC) failed to comply with the proper election procedures.

Azmin said he believed that Pakatan Harapan's ally Warisan, which leads the Sabah government, has done its best but are facing challenges.

"I believe Sabah Chief Minister Shafie Apdal and his team have done their best in the last 20 months.

"However, due to major legacy issues, they need time to convince Sabahans that the future of Sabah and its people lies in the hands of the Warisan-led government," he said.

Amanah satisfied with Kimanis campaign

Meanwhile, Agriculture and Agro-based Industries Minister Salahuddin Ayub said Harapan will continue to assist in Sabah's future developments.

"We have fought a clean fight. We have tried out best. They won on their own turf in a stiff battle.

"So we are satisfied with the campaign and assistance that Amanah had given in particular. I feel the result is not bad," the Amanah deputy president told reporters after launching the Antibiotics Run 2020 with Health Minister Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad in Serdang this morning.

Dzulkefly, who is also Amanah strategic director, said Harapan in Sabah should continue with the reform agenda initiated by the federal government.

"We will continue the implementation of programmes and major agendas such as the Shared Prosperity Vision 2030.

"We will move forward regardless of the outcome of the by-election," he said.

Sabah Umno had been reeling from defections since the last general election.

However, in this by-election, it managed to bring together the fractious Sabah opposition, including former BN allies and "third force" parties.

It even managed to get the backing of Anifah's support despite having quit Umno to become an independent.