Warisan defends contesting in opposition seats instead of BN's

 

JOHOR POLLS | As the Johor polls campaign runs into the fifth day, Warisan, which made its electoral debut in the state, has spent a substantial amount of time defending its decisions.

Among the criticisms the Sabah-based party is facing is the fact that all six seats it is contesting have opposition incumbents and none are from the BN.

This is despite Warisan claiming it will offer a better opposition alternative as the party did not enter into a confidence and supply deal with the BN-PN federal government.

Warisan's Bukit Batu candidate Lee Ming Wen (photo, above) was quizzed about the party's interest in opposition-held seats during a press conference in his constituency yesterday.

"I'm not going to comment on that. My focus is on local issues and that's the reason I'm here. That's all," he said.

Warisan vice-president Junz Wong, who was present at the press conference, then took over, explaining that Warisan had limited presence in Johor and had to focus on seats where it is able to gain support.

Warisan vice-president Junz Wong

"We don't even have branches or divisions here yet. We are only just coming into the Johor election, so we looked at seats where we can get enough support to stand in.

"When we look at the seat composition, we do not look at who the incumbent is or which party won. We look at seats like Pekan Nanas, Permas and Mahkota, which have 55 percent bumiputera voters and above," he said.

Wong reiterated that Warisan wanted to be a strong opposition and was offering voters an alternative.

"It is beyond reasonable doubt that people badly need a choice and Harapan is no longer a choice for them," he said.

Warisan will contest in BN seats

Going forward, Wong stressed, Warisan does plan to contest in BN-held seats, just as it had done in Sabah.

Warisan has also come under criticism for recruiting several party leaders that were previously from other parties.

Lee, for example, was previously with PKR.

However, Wong said people should be fair to Lee as he was never an elected representative when he switched parties.

"It doesn't mean that you've betrayed the people's mandate because no mandate was given.

"But if you switch sides with a seat, then I agree," Wong added.

Lee is facing PKR's Chiong Sen Sern, PN's Tan Heng Choon and BN's S Spayyah in Bukit Batu.

The seat, comprising 58 percent Chinese, 34 percent Malays and seven per cent Indians, was won by PKR in the last general election. - Mkini

Warisan chief Shafie Apdal (centre) announcing on Feb 25 the six Warisan candidates for the Johor polls