KUALA LUMPUR – Kedah Pakatan Harapan (PH) is confident the coalition will be able to recapture the state in its upcoming election, citing multiple factors it says will play in its favour.
State coalition information and communications director Datuk Ismail Salleh said PH has various strategies in store which would turn the political tide.
This is after Perikatan Nasional’s (PN) “green wave” in the 15th general election saw the Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin-led coalition nearly make a clean sweep of Kedah, winning 14 of the 15 parliamentary seats on offer.
However, Ismail is unperturbed by this development, expressing confidence that the situation ahead of the state polls, which are due this year, has changed.
The Pengkalan Kundor assemblyman said the first factor which would contribute to PH’s victory in Kedah is the fact that the “PN tsunami” in GE15 is only temporary, as it was largely influenced by racial and religious rhetoric.
“Many have now realised that this sentiment is being whipped up merely to reap political gain and does not offer any good in the effort to develop the country,” he said in a statement today.
Ismail said PH is also likely to win in Kedah based on the excellent performance of the unity government in its first month in power in Putrajaya.
The former PAS lawmaker noted how Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has led by example, and that his personal aura and determination to push the country forward would benefit PH.
“The recognition given by leaders across the globe – together with their commitment to invest in our country – will expedite our economic growth, which will subsequently prosper the rakyat.”
The final factor that could influence the coming Kedah election, according to Ismail, is the anticipated political pact between PH and Barisan Nasional (BN) ahead of the campaigning period, similar to their federal-level cooperation.
He added that formal discussions between the two coalitions have started at all levels.
“These three key factors will ease off the ‘PN tsunami’ momentum and will provide the advantage to the unity pact of PH and BN, therefore giving us the victory in the coming state election,” he said.
In the 2018 general election, PH formed the Kedah government after winning 18 of the 36 seats contested, with PAS and BN capturing 15 and three constituencies respectively.
However, a political realignment at the federal level in early 2020 also led to a change in administration in Kedah, with PAS coming into power in May of that year after Bersatu lawmakers quit PH to pledge support for the Islamist party. – The Vibes, January 1, 2023
