PAS will postpone its annual general assembly or muktamar scheduled for the beginning of June if the parliamentary by-elections for Sungai Besar in Selangor and Kuala Kangsar in Perak fall within its scheduled dates.
PAS deputy president Datuk Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man said the party was waiting for an announcement by the Election Commission (EC) before its central leadership makes a decision.
PAS had scheduled its 62nd assembly for June 1 to 4 to be held in Kota Baru, Kelantan.
The EC will meet tomorrow to determine the dates for the two by-elections, which political observers speculate would be held simultaneously by the end of next month, with polling day likely to be June 4.
“We are waiting for the announcement and if the by-elections fall during our proposed assembly, we will postpone it so our leaders and members can concentrate on the by-elections,” Tuan Ibrahim said.
“We will hold the assembly at a later date as all of us will be involved in the preparations and campaigns for the by-elections.”
The Sungai Besar and Kuala Kangsar parliamentary seats fell vacant when the MPs, Datuk Noriah Kasnon and Datuk Wan Mohammad Khair-il Anuar Wan Ahmad, respectively, were among those killed in a helicopter crash in Sarawak last Thursday.
The two constituencies have been PAS traditional seats, and polling there has always seen a straight fight between PAS and Barisan Nasional (BN).
On the possibility of three-cornered fights for the two seats, Tuan Ibrahim said he would not expect it to happen because the two seats had been traditionally PAS’s seats.
“This is especially so in Sungai Besar where PAS has a higher chance of winning given the current political situation,” he said.
On the likely candidates, he said the party leadership would meet and decide as soon as the EC announced the dates.
Tuan Ibrahim said the main agenda for the party’s muktamar would be on preparations and gearing-up for the next general election, to be held by 2018.
“This year’s assembly is important for the party to take it to greater heights and also to focus on empowering the people and upholding the constitution,” he said – themalaymailonline
