BEAUFORT (Jan 6): A viral picture of Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal passing some money to an individual has nothing to do with the Kimanis by-election.

The Parti Warisan Sabah president said that it was "dirty politics” by the opposition to smear the Warisan campaign in the run up to the Jan 18 by-election.

Explaining the context behind the picture, he said it was taken in Sandakan on Jan 3 when he went to a mosque for Friday prayers, and later gave out a donation for poor residents in the area.

"I was in Sandakan for the launching of the airport upgrade programme with Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng.

"It has nothing to do with Kimanis; that was in Sandakan, ” he told reporters in Kota Kinabalu yesterday.

Shafie also asked whether the whole state administration should stop functioning or stop helping needy people in other areas of the state, just because of Kimanis.

"I hope everyone understands that normal activities of government and providing assistance should go on outside of Kimanis as usual, ” said Shafie, who added that such attempts to spread the photo taken in a mosque was nothing less then a dirty trick to smear Warisan and him.