Dr M: GTA risks losing Malay votes if it works with Harapan

Gerakan Tanah Air (GTA) is disinclined to work together with Pakatan Harapan for fear of losing the Malay votes, which it targets in the upcoming general election (GE15).

Its founding chairperson Dr Mahathir Mohamad conceded that GTA risks losing the support of Malay voters if it chooses to work with Harapan because the Malays dislike DAP, a component member of the opposition bloc.

"The problem with Harapan is that most of the Malays dislike DAP. Therefore, if we work with Harapan, we may risk losing the Malay votes," he told a press conference in Putrajaya today after meeting with the GTA grassroots.

Reiterating the coalition's position that Umno is the main enemy of GTA, Mahathir said a vote for Umno is a vote to sell off the country.

"Umno is our enemy. If Umno wins in GE15, the country will be destroyed, the country is doomed.

"We know Umno's background. If Umno is in power under the leadership of Najib Abdul Razak and Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, the country, Umno and public funds will be destroyed," the former premier added.

GTA to consider working with PN

Last week, political analyst Mohammad Agus Yusoff and economist Jomo Kwame Sundaram opined that the opposition should explore the possibility of working together in GE despite their differences.

PKR communications director Fahmi Fadzil said recently that his party has no intention of cooperating with both GTA and PN.

PN chairperson Muhyiddin Yassin, meanwhile, was reportedly saying that his door is open for cooperation with GTA.

PN chairperson Muhyiddin Yassin

In response, Mahathir said GTA will consider the possibility of both coalitions working together in GE15.

"We will consider it and we will see if they are like-minded parties and not against our policy and principles," he said.

GTA candidates next week

In another development, Mahathir said GTA is set to unveil its candidates for GE15 next week.

He said the problems faced by GTA in seat negotiation have been resolved.

New Straits Times previously reported that the three-month-old political pact squabbled over seat distributions, particularly for the 14 parliamentary seats in Kelantan.

This came as its ally, Parti Bumiputera Perkasa Malaysia (Putra) announced that the party would be contesting at least half of the seats in the state.

This included Tumpat, Pengkalan Chepa, Kota Bharu, Pasir Mas, Rantau Panjang, Bachok and Tanah Merah.

In an immediate response, Kelantan Pejuang chief Sazmi Miah said the coalition has yet to arrive at a consensus because there was an overlap of candidates for parliamentary seats submitted by both parties including for the Kota Bharu, Tumpat and Pengkalan Chepa.

He also explained that GTA held a meeting today so that its grassroots can better understand its intention to enter the election battlefield and the reason why the coalition is contesting under Pejuang's ticket. - Mkini