Alias Sani

Summary

Alias Sani is a two-term Warisan assemblyman for Sekong, Sabah, having won the seat in the 2020 and 2025 Sabah state elections while serving as a Warisan Supreme Council member. He is an opposition voice in the Sabah State Legislative Assembly, focusing on Sabah's constitutional revenue rights under MA63, water supply, and governance accountability. He was detained without trial under the Internal Security Act from 2003 to 2007; he has stated no criminal conviction was ever recorded against him.

Biography

Alias Sani is a Parti Warisan Sabah (Warisan) politician and a member of the Warisan Supreme Council who has represented the Sekong state constituency in the Sabah State Legislative Assembly since 2020. He is of Dusun descent and originates from Sandakan [1]. He first contested the Sekong seat in the 16th Sabah State Election on 26 September 2020, defeating five rivals to win with 5,937 votes and a majority of 1,599 [2]. He retained the seat in the 17th Sabah State Election on 29 November 2025, polling 6,487 votes with an 800-vote majority in a six-cornered contest [3]. In the 15th Malaysian General Election (GE15) on 19 November 2022, Alias Sani contested the parliamentary seat of Batu Sapi under the Warisan banner, polling 7,218 votes but losing to GRS candidate Khairul Firdaus Akhbar Khan who secured 12,152 votes [4]. Prior to entering elected politics, Alias Sani was detained without trial under the Internal Security Act (ISA) from 2003 to 2007; he has consistently maintained that no criminal conviction was ever recorded against him and that his detention was preventive in nature [5]. As a state assemblyman, he has raised issues including water supply in the Sandakan district, Sabah's constitutional revenue entitlements under the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63), natural resource governance, and accountability in state government [6]. His age, based on a statement he made in May 2023, places his birth year at approximately 1968; no further biographical details have been verified from allowlist sources.

Known for

Alias Sani is known as a two-term Warisan assemblyman for Sekong who has been a vocal opposition voice in the Sabah State Legislative Assembly, challenging the state government on issues of revenue rights, water supply, and governance accountability. He gained public attention ahead of the 2020 Sabah state election when his prior detention under the Internal Security Act (ISA) from 2003 to 2007 was publicised, which he disputed, stating no criminal conviction was ever entered against him. He also contested the federal Batu Sapi parliamentary seat at GE15 in 2022, narrowly finishing third.

Political positions

Alias Sani has consistently advocated for Sabah's rights under the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63), including calls for the federal government to pay the state's 40% revenue entitlement [7]. He has argued that Sabah's poverty rate can be reduced if the state's natural wealth is returned to the people and managed by state entities [8]. He has raised concerns in the Sabah State Legislative Assembly about deteriorating water supply in the Sandakan district, including an acute shortage affecting residents in Batu Sapi [9]. As an opposition assemblyman, he has publicly questioned the state government over governance and accountability issues, including alleged corruption implicating state officials, and criticised the assembly's refusal to permit related questions during sitting sessions [10]. He has also defended the rights of the Dusun community and condemned racially provocative content targeting it [11].

Political career

1. September 2020Contested and won the Sekong state seat in the 16th Sabah State Election under the Warisan banner, polling 5,937 votes with a majority of 1,599 votes.⛓
2. November 2022Contested the Batu Sapi parliamentary seat at the 15th Malaysian General Election (GE15) under the Warisan banner, polling 7,218 votes. Lost to GRS candidate Khairul Firdaus Akhbar Khan who secured 12,152 votes.⛓
3. November 2025Retained the Sekong state seat in the 17th Sabah State Election, polling 6,487 votes with a majority of 800 votes in a six-cornered contest.⛓

Election history

• 2025Sekong (Sabah State)Won⛓
• 2022Batu Sapi (Parliament)Lost⛓
• 2020Sekong (Sabah State)Won⛓

Perspectives on key issues

• OppositionAlias Sani has positioned himself as a Warisan opposition voice in the Sabah State Legislative Assembly, questioning the state government on revenue rights, water supply failures, and governance accountability.⛓
• GovernmentThe Sabah State Legislative Assembly, under a GRS-led government, rejected Alias Sani's request to pose questions about an alleged corruption scandal implicating state officials, citing non-compliance with Standing Orders.⛓
• OppositionSAPP president Datuk Yong Teck Lee, as reported by The Star, called on Warisan to explain why it fielded Alias Sani given his prior ISA detention, saying it was 'a very worrying thing' for a candidate to have admitted making donations that led to his detention.⛓
• VerifiedFactsAlias Sani won the Sekong state seat in both the 2020 and 2025 Sabah state elections. In the 2022 GE15, he contested Batu Sapi but lost to the GRS candidate. He has never been convicted of any criminal offence; his ISA detention from 2003 to 2007 was preventive and not pursuant to a criminal trial.⛓