KUALA LUMPUR – The four former Melaka assemblymen who pulled their support for the chief minister are reportedly seeking to contest under the Pakatan Harapan (PH) banner in next month’s state polls.
The MalaysiaGazette reported that the four met opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and other PH leaders at a hotel in Melaka yesterday evening to discuss the matter.
It added that former Umno duo Datuk Seri Idris Haron and Datuk Nor Azman Hassan, as well as independent Datuk Norhizam Hassan Baktee and ex-Bersatu man Datuk Noor Effandi Ahmad, were determined to join PH and contest in the election on November 20.
Idris was quoted as saying that despite being “newcomers” to the PH fold, the four men did not intend to sit on the sidelines in the polls.
“We understand that this party (PH coalition) already has people. We don’t want to discuss this (in the open), but will leave our fate to Melaka PH in the upcoming state election.”
Yesterday, the Election Commission (EC) set November 20 as polling day for the Melaka vote and November 8 for nomination, giving parties 12 days to campaign.
EC chairman Datuk Abdul Ghani Salleh said early voters can cast their ballots on November 16. The electoral body is expecting a turnout of around 70% of the more than 295,000 registered voters, despite the Covid-19 pandemic.
The state assembly was dissolved by Governor Tun Mohd Ali Mohd Rustam on October 5 after Datuk Seri Sulaiman Md Ali lost majority support as chief minister.
PH, along with Norhizam and Noor Effandi, previously urged Ali to rescind his decision to dissolve the state assembly given the pandemic.
Ghani said a total of 217 polling centres will be open on voting day from 8am to 5.30pm, while 31 will be set up for early voting.
The EC will spend RM46 million to carry out the polls. – The Vibes, October 19, 2021
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