Rusdin Riman

Summary

Datuk Rusdin Riman is the Paginatan state assemblyman for KDM, elected in the 17th Sabah State Election (November 2025) with a 736-vote majority, and is KDM's sole representative in the state assembly. A former Permanent Secretary of the Sabah Ministry of Finance, he brings an extensive civil service background to the legislature, where he has focused on Sabah's fiscal rights, including the state's 40% revenue share claim from the federal government. He also serves as KDM's de facto leader in the state house.

Biography

Datuk Rusdin Riman (also written Rusdin @ Musidi Riman) is the Member of the Sabah State Legislative Assembly (ADUN) for Paginatan, representing Parti Kesejahteraan Demokratik Masyarakat (KDM). He won the seat in the 17th Sabah State Election held on 29 November 2025, polling 5,992 votes and defeating rivals from GRS, BN, STAR, and Warisan with a majority of 736 votes [1]. He is KDM's sole elected representative in the 17th Sabah State Legislative Assembly, and is listed as the party leader in the assembly [2]. Before entering politics, Rusdin served as Permanent Secretary of the Sabah Ministry of Finance — the state's most senior civil service post in the finance ministry — a role he held at least from 2019 through 2022, during which he presented budget documents to Chief Minister Hajiji Noor and officiated at GLC dividend handover ceremonies [3][4][5]. He was formally announced as KDM's Paginatan candidate by the party's deputy president Datuk Wetrom Bahanda in July 2025 [1][6]. Prior to contesting, FMT reported that Rusdin was the deputy chairman of Progressive Insurance Berhad, a general insurance firm in which the Sabah government is the majority shareholder [1]. Following the 2025 election, Malay Mail and Sinar Daily reported that Rusdin was among those being considered for a state assistant minister position in the Finance Ministry [3][7], though no official appointment has been publicly confirmed.

Known for

Rusdin Riman is defined politically as a career technocrat-turned-politician, having served as Permanent Secretary of the Sabah Finance Ministry before entering electoral politics. He is KDM's sole assemblyman in the 17th Sabah State Legislative Assembly and represents the party's leadership in the state house. He has publicly championed Sabah's claim to a 40% revenue share from the federal government as a fiscal rights issue for the state [4].

Political positions

As the sole KDM assemblyman, Rusdin has used his maiden assembly debates to focus on fiscal federalism and state development. During the state Budget 2026 debate in December 2025, he acknowledged the surplus budget as a positive for development but noted that Sabah's pace of development remains slow compared with Sarawak. He supported calls to have Sabah's 40% revenue share entitlement included as a component of receivable revenues from Putrajaya, citing a High Court decision mandating the federal government to review this payment as strengthening Sabah's claims [4]. KDM itself is described as a multiracial party that advocates for the rights of Sabah in line with the aspirations of the Malaysia Agreement 1963, and targets seats historically held by Kadazandusun, Murut, and Rungus communities [3].

Before politics

1. January 2019Rusdin Riman was serving as Sabah State Treasurer (Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Finance), giving a clean bill of health to the state's finances in a public statement.⛓
2. November 2021As Sabah Finance Ministry permanent secretary, Rusdin donated RM13,500 from the ministry's Islamic charity fund to the State Covid-19 Disaster Management Committee (SDMC), as reported by Bernama.⛓
3. December 2021As Sabah Finance Ministry permanent secretary, Rusdin presented the text of the Sabah Budget 2022 speech to Chief Minister Hajiji Noor at Menara Kinabalu, Kota Kinabalu.⛓
4. December 2021As Finance Ministry permanent secretary and PIB deputy chairman, Rusdin received RM113.26 million in dividends from 12 state GLCs and statutory bodies on behalf of the Sabah government.⛓
5. June 2022Rusdin Riman was identified in The Star as state Finance Ministry permanent secretary and also deputy chairman of Progressive Insurance Berhad (PIB), a Sabah government-linked general insurer.⛓

Political career

1. July 2025KDM deputy president Datuk Wetrom Bahanda announced that Rusdin Riman would be fielded by the party in the Paginatan seat for the upcoming 17th Sabah state election.⛓
2. November 2025KDM officially named Datuk Rusdin @ Musidi Riman as its candidate for Paginatan in the list of 39 confirmed candidates for the 17th Sabah State Election.⛓
3. 29 November 2025Rusdin Riman won the Paginatan state seat for KDM in the 17th Sabah State Election with 5,992 votes and a majority of 736, defeating candidates from GRS, BN, STAR, Warisan, and independents.⛓
4. December 2025As the sole KDM assemblyman in the 17th Sabah State Legislative Assembly, Rusdin debated the Sabah Budget 2026, advocating for Sabah's 40% revenue share entitlement from the federal government to accelerate state development.⛓

Election history

• 2025Paginatan (Sabah State)Won32.6%⛓

Perspectives on key issues

• GovernmentMalay Mail and Sinar Daily reported in December 2025 that Rusdin Riman was among those being considered for one of 18 state assistant minister positions, potentially in the Finance Ministry, as part of coalition negotiations following KDM's support for the GRS-led Sabah government.⛓
• VerifiedFactsRusdin Riman won the Paginatan seat in the 17th Sabah State Election (29 November 2025) with 5,992 votes and a majority of 736 votes, confirmed by both FMT and NST.⛓
• VerifiedFactsRusdin is listed by Wikipedia as the Leader of the Social Democratic Harmony Party (KDM) in the 17th Sabah State Legislative Assembly, making him the de facto KDM parliamentary floor leader.⛓
• IndustryFMT and The Star reported that during his tenure as Sabah Finance Ministry permanent secretary, Rusdin simultaneously served as deputy chairman of Progressive Insurance Berhad (PIB), a Sabah government-linked general insurer — a dual role that was publicly visible at official state functions.⛓

Business interests (publicly reported)

FMT reported in July 2025 that Rusdin was 'reportedly the deputy chairman of Progressive Insurance Berhad, a general insurance firm in which the Sabah government is the majority shareholder.' This role was also referenced in a June 2022 The Star report, which identified him as PIB deputy chairman while he was concurrently serving as state Finance Ministry permanent secretary (Source: freemalaysiatoday.com, thestar.com.my). His current status in this role following his election as assemblyman has not been confirmed by any allowlist source.