Penang and Selangor talks not contentious issues for unity govt parties - PM

 

Pakatan Harapan leader Anwar Ibrahim has dismissed suggestions that seat negotiations in Selangor and Penang had hit a snag.

After a coalition-government parties’ meeting last night, Anwar was specifically asked by a reporter about the two states because "DAP would want to keep its composition".

"We discussed the matter earlier and there was no issue. Where did you hear this from?

"We have accepted states led by Umno. Other states led by Harapan have also been accepted.

"This is not a contentious issue," he said.

However, Anwar said that he will leave it up to the state leadership to conduct seat negotiations and convey the results to the central leadership for further deliberations.

Harapan holds 33 out of 40 state seats in Penang, of which 19 are DAP, 12 PKR and 2 Amanah.

Umno holds two seats, PAS holds one and the rest are vacant.

Harapan also dominates Selangor with 40 seats - PKR with the highest number of seats (19), followed by DAP (15) and Amanah (six).

Umno holds five seats in Selangor. The others are held by PBM (two), Warisan (one), Pejuang (two), Bersatu (four), PAS (one) and one vacant.

DAP is also the leading party in Harapan-led Negeri Sembilan with 11 seats, followed by PKR (six) and Amanah (three).

BN holds the other 16 seats, mostly won by Umno and one by MIC.

Unique attempt

Separately, Anwar announced that Muda, Kesejahteraan Demokratik Masyarakat (KDM) and Parti Bangsa Malaysia will be invited to attend the first large-scale unity government national convention on May 14.

He said the purpose of the convention was to improve unity and implement the people’s agenda - by organising a programme that provides inclusivity to all races from all regions.

He added that the convention was a message to the entire nation - signifying a unique attempt in history.

“This is an attempt at repeating our era of independence, and perhaps a second attempt by (former prime minister) Tun (Abdul) Razak to reach racial and regional consensus,” said Anwar.

Muda has repeatedly pressed Harapan for a reply to its application to join the coalition. Its president Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman said the party has yet to get an answer on the matter despite having sent four letters to Harapan and attending two meetings with Anwar.

Muda also lamented a lack of invitations to coalition government meetings despite backing support for the government.

Meanwhile, Anwar said last night that despite the state elections largely involving Harapan and BN, other parties in the coalition government that are not contesting will provide their support and cooperation. - Mkini