We disagree, but there’s no animosity, BN rep says of ties with DAP

 

Duyong assemblyman Noor Helmy Abdul Halim says BN and DAP should put aside their differences as they are now part of Anwar Ibrahim’s unity government. (Bernama pic)

PETALING JAYA: A Barisan Nasional assemblyman has denied that there is bad blood between the coalition and DAP in Melaka, despite their past clashes.

Noor Helmy Abdul Halim said DAP was merely playing its role as the opposition. However, he said, it could have been less combative and refrained from making a huge fuss over minor issues.

“I don’t think there was any animosity between DAP and BN in Melaka.

“They were behaving like an opposition that opposed everything,” the Duyong assemblyman told FMT, adding that it was important for both sides to put aside their differences as they were now part of Anwar Ibrahim’s unity government.

Helmy said this when asked to comment on DAP secretary-general Loke Siew Fook’s call for party leaders to change their approach when dealing with state governments led by BN.

Loke had said that state party leaders needed to be more constructive in providing checks and balances.

Melaka DAP vice-chairman Khoo Poay Tiong said his team had started working with the Umno-led state government and acknowledged the good relationship between him and the two Umno assemblymen in his constituency.

“I brought two DAP assemblymen to meet with an executive councillor and we discussed how we could help resolve issues faced by the public,” he said.

He said that while the DAP leadership at the national level had cooperated well with BN, more time was needed to mend the ties at the grassroots level.

“As state leaders, we will play a role in ensuring the relationship in the unity government holds for the next five years,” he said.

Melaka DAP secretary Allex Seah said he had been liaising with his BN counterpart since 2018 and had even reached out to the latter when floods struck Taman Merdeka.

Seah said his reprimands against the state government had always been fact-based and never emotive.

He agreed that a different approach was needed in view of a “friendlier” state government.

“We don’t need to always oppose, but we should speak up on issues,” he said. - FMT