Pakatan Harapan (PH) has held several discussions with Barisan Nasional (BN) on possible cooperation for the next Melaka state election, PH communications director Fahmi Fadzil said.
Fahmi said Melaka PKR chief Adam Adli had been in direct contact with state BN chairman Ab Rauf Yusoh to discuss seat negotiations for the state polls, which are expected by the end of the year.
“At the party level, we are identifying the suitable seats and candidates, and have also held discussions with all parties, including our friends from BN,” he told reporters on the sidelines of an event here.
“Rauf has stated his openness to holding discussions with any party, so we welcome that. Adam informed me that he has held several discussions with Rauf,” he said.
BN, PN alliance faces uncertainty in Melaka
BN chairman Ahmad Zahid Hamidi initially said BN and Perikatan Nasional (PN) would continue their cooperation in the Melaka polls following their convincing victory in the Negeri Sembilan state election.
However, the cooperation appeared to reach an impasse after Zahid said BN wanted to contest the 21 seats it won in the previous Melaka state election.
PN maintained that negotiations were still ongoing.
Zahid said yesterday that BN remained open to discussions on seat allocations, including the possibility of exchanging seats, provided the negotiations were conducted honestly and sincerely.
PH welcomes BN’s openness to seat talks
Fahmi welcomed Zahid’s openness to seat negotiations, despite his earlier statement that BN would continue cooperating with PN in Melaka.
He said the discussions covered not only the state election but also Melaka’s six parliamentary seats in the next general election.
Fahmi said the discussions represented an opportunity that should be considered to ensure political stability in Melaka and safeguard the nation’s interests.
He added that further discussions would be left to PKR vice-president Saifuddin Nasution Ismail and PH election director Amirudin Shari.
