Barisan Nasional (BN) and Pakatan Harapan (PH), having formed an electoral pact for the upcoming Sabah state election on November 29, will address the issue of overlapping seat claims at a special meeting scheduled for tomorrow, according to Sabah BN chairman Bung Moktar Radin. He expressed confidence that the negotiations would be finalised to prevent any clashes between the two coalitions at the polls. “We will finalise it on Saturday,” Bung told FMT, declining to specify which state seats were under discussion.
Contested Seats and Coalition Dynamics
A source, who preferred to remain anonymous, revealed that seven seats—Gum-Gum, Segama, Sindumin, Tanjung Aru, Liawan, and Kemabong—are being eyed by both BN and PH. The source suggested that Umno, a key component of BN, could secure six of these seats, posing a challenge in deciding which seat to allocate to PH.
Additionally, BN plans to announce its candidates on November 8, with a stringent condition: candidates must sign an agreement to remain loyal to the party post-election, or face a RM100 million penalty for defection.
Progress and Tensions in Seat Allocations
Last month, PH secretary-general Saifuddin Nasution Ismail indicated that seat negotiations were nearing completion, with only two to three seats requiring further discussion. However, tensions have surfaced over specific constituencies.
For instance, Libaran Umno has expressed its intent to contest the Gum-Gum seat, despite an earlier agreement between PH and the Umno secretariat to allocate it to PH. Meanwhile, DAP is reportedly interested in contesting Tanjung Aru, previously won by Warisan, along with two rural seats.
In August, DAP and PKR proposed former Tenom MP Noorita Sual for the Kemabong seat, which was previously held by Rubin Balang of Parti Gagasan Rakyat Sabah (PGRS), a member of the Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) coalition. While PH has also formed a pact with GRS, BN and GRS have opted not to collaborate.
