JOHOR POLLS | Pakatan Harapan is hoping to soften its wrinkles by hitching a ride with the new kid on the political block, according to Umno supreme council member Mohd Puad Zarkashi.
He said the move to cede nine seats to Muda for the Johor state election was also an admission that its youth wings had failed to deliver.
“DAP, Amanah and PKR are hitching a ride on Muda's image to appear younger.
“It is also an admission that its youth wings such as PKR Youth and DAP youth have failed,” Puad (above) added in a Facebook posting.
Yesterday, DAP and Amanah revealed that the pair would step aside for Muda in six seats - Tenang, Bukit Kepong, Parit Raja, Machap, Puteri Wangsa and Bukit Permai.
PKR, on the other hand, has offered three seats, which have not been named.
The March 23 election will witness 18-year-olds casting their ballots for the first time following the successful implementation of Undi18.
The 56-seat Johor state assembly was dissolved on Jan 22 after incumbent Johor Menteri Besar Hasni Mohammad obtained the consent of the ruler.
The state government became fragile after the death of Kempas assemblyperson Osman Sapian which left Hasni with just a single majority in the state assembly.
Nomination day has been fixed for Feb 26, leading to a 14-day campaign period.
Return Puteri Wangsa, PKR leader tells Muda
Meanwhile, another PKR leader, Manivannan Gowindasamy, expressed dissatisfaction with Amanah's decision to give the Puteri Wangsa seat to Muda.
In an open letter to Muda president Syed Saddiq Abdul Rahman, the party’s deputy information chief said PKR stood a better chance of winning the seat.
“For Syed Saddiq's information, PKR intends to field its Johor women's wing chief Napsiah Khamis who was born in Puteri Wangsa.
“If Syed Saddiq values this struggle, then he should consider returning the seat to Napsiah who has been working (in Puteri Wangsa) in an aggressive, efficient and holistic manner to ensure a win for Harapan and the opposition bloc,” he added.
Yesterday, Napsiah also registered her disappointment and accused Amanah of “pawning” the Puteri Wangsa seat to Muda.
Of the six seats given to Muda, Puteri Wangsa is seen as the most winnable since Harapan and its predecessor Pakatan Rakyat won it for two terms.
In the 2013 general election, PAS, which was at the time still part of Pakatan Rakyat, won in Puteri Wangsa with a 3,469-vote majority.
After PAS quit the coalition, its splinter party Amanah took its place under Harapan.
However, Puteri Wangsa was ceded to Bersatu as part of a deal to allow the latter to contest a majority of seats in Johor in the 2018 general election.
Bersatu won the seat with a 24,949-vote majority but quit Harapan in 2020. - Mkini
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