THE Pakatan Harapan (PH) alliance in Sabah aims to wrap up negotiations on seat distributions by the end of the year before initiating pacts with other alliances for the Sabah election.
Sabah Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) chief Datuk Mustapha Sakmud said PH recently concluded the first round of seat negotiations, with a second round being planned soon.
“We have only had discussions within PH so far. We haven't yet engaged with other coalitions like Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) and Barisan Nasional (BN),” he said in Kota Kinabalu.
Mustapha however stressed the importance of ensuring a balanced partnership, citing a comprehensive formula must be worked out between political groups before going into the state election scheduled next year.
He added that the discussions this time around are not limited to just seat distribution but will also cover appointed assemblymen, grassroots appointments, and native representatives.
“As I’ve always said, we need to ensure our cooperation is balanced and not one-sided.
“We want to increase the number of seats we hold in Sabah, but this will depend on the negotiations.
“We want a comprehensive package, meaning we also need to discuss the appointments,” he said.
Mustapha stressed a clear agreement in writing will be drawn up for the purpose, adding that this was crucial as Sabah PH had been given a raw deal from political partners in past elections.
“We don’t want to negotiate after the election. Based on our previous experience, post-election agreements were not fully implemented,” he said.
Mustapha acknowledged ongoing efforts to implement the Madani government formula in Sabah but noted that this will depend on whether GRS and BN can sort out their differences.
There are factions within Sabah BN, and one group has already expressed reluctance to work with GRS, making it difficult to realise the Madani government model in Sabah.
He also revealed that Sabah PH is keen on contesting in any of the 13 new state seats to increase the number of assemblymen in the state legislative assembly.
He also noted that PKR will defend its two seats but is eyeing several other seats due to the strong local support.
Mustapha who is the Sepanggar MP also noted demands from within PH for him to run for a state assembly seat. - October 20, 2024
