Selangor BN is upbeat on the possibility of it striking an electoral pact with Pakatan Harapan in the forthcoming state election.
The state MCA chapter, however, is adamant that it would not be left out of the equation.
When contacted, Selangor BN chief Megat Zulkarnain Omardin said he had unofficial talks with Menteri Besar Amirudin Shari on the matter, and they both agreed to hold further discussions.
"It was not even a meeting, it was something very casual. We met each other on a few occasions, (including) the football match between Malaysia and Singapore, where we sat down and discussed during half-time.
"I think we have a good rapport and we have agreed to discuss the cooperation seriously," Megat (above) said.
He added that this was in line with the mandate from BN chairperson Ahmad Zahid Hamidi for all state BN chairpersons to negotiate with their Harapan counterparts on the forthcoming six state assembly elections.
On Jan 11, Amirudin said the form of cooperation between Harapan and BN for the state polls is expected to be decided, at the latest, by the end of this month.
However, thus far seat allocations have not been discussed, Megat said.
"We have not gone into details, including the number of seats, where or who should contest. We have preliminarily agreed to work together," he added.
S’gor Amanah, DAP leaders not keen
Selangor Amanah leader Sany Hamzan previously said Harapan would defend all 40 state seats under its control.
Sany was quoted by Free Malaysia Today (FMT) as saying he was made to understand that Harapan would not make way for BN in the constituencies.
Responding to this, Megat said he respected the Hulu Langat MP's views - but said it was still a matter open for discussion.
"I think everybody has got the right to give their views but it is subject to what will be agreed upon.
"It is premature for us to come out with a statement as yet because we have not discussed it.”
Seat negotiations must be viewed from a big-picture perspective, and not just based on previous elections, he added.
Megat said each seat should also be reviewed, such as achievements and level of support.
However, Sany is not the only Selangor Harapan leader not keen on giving up ground.
Selangor DAP deputy chief Ean Yong Hian Wah said his party insists on contesting in all the seats it won in 2018.
"We will defend all our seats," Ean told Malaysiakini.
Harapan originally won 51 seats in 2018, of which six were won by Bersatu.
A 2019 by-election in Semenyih saw Bersatu lose the seat to BN - which increased BN's number of state seats to five.
Harapan's seat count then dropped to 40 after the Sheraton Move, with Bersatu representatives either exiting the coalition or joining third-force party Pejuang, while PKR and DAP lost three seats in total to defections either to Bersatu, Parti Bangsa Malaysia or Warisan.
In total, Selangor has 56 seats in the state legislature - meaning that if Harapan insists on contesting all 40 seats it currently has, there will be just 16 available for BN.
MCA may go solo if given no seats
However, there is speculation that BN is eyeing 18 seats, and that component parties MCA and MIC - which lost all 14 seats they contested in 2018 - want to contest as well.
"We were made to understand that the state BN leadership requested to contest in at least one-third of the state seats. They may not settle for just five seats," Selangor MCA chief Ng Chok Sin told Malaysiakini.
Ng said MCA would not accept it if it is not allocated any seats in Selangor for the state election.
"However, I think it is unlikely that MCA will not be given any seat to contest at all," he added.
In the event that it is not given seats, Ng said, MCA had recently briefed the party grassroots about various possible scenarios in the state election, including the possibility of MCA or BN going solo.
Hence, he said it was important for the BN leadership to be firm on the matter.
"If you (Harapan) want a unity government, yet you decline to give way (to BN), then we have to go solo and this may shake the cooperation in the federal government too," he cautioned.
However, Ng stressed that Selangor MCA would abide by any decision made by the party's central leadership. - Mkini
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.