Seat negotiations for the Johor selection are progressing rapidly, with more than 50 per cent of allocations among Perikatan Nasional (PN) component parties already finalised, says Tan Sri Annuar Musa.
The PAs Johor election director said discussions among coalition partners had been smooth, with a significant number of seats settled where there is no overlap between parties.
“We sat down today to compare notes and present our respective wish lists. For seats without overlap, the matter is settled,” he told reporters at the PAS headquarters here today.
He said for constituencies where multiple parties had expressed interest, a committee would reconvene tomorrow morning to finalise the remaining allocations.
“We will go back, review the numbers and continue discussions tomorrow morning to resolve everything. More than half is already done,” he added.
The negotiations are being facilitated by a committee chaired by PN election director Datuk Seri Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor.
Asked whether newly-admitted PN component parties, Parti Pejuang Tanah Air and Wawasan Negara, were involved in the seat talks, Annuar said they were not part of the discussions.
“They are not part of the discussions at all,” he said.
Annuar also addressed speculation over a possible Barisan Nasional (BN) tie-up, following Pas deputy president Datuk Seri Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man’s call to revive Muafakat Nasional ahead of the Johor polls.
BN, however, has ruled out any revival of the pact, with Umno president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi maintaining that Umno will not cooperate with Pas under Muafakat Nasional 2.0.
Dismissing rumours over the use of the BN logo, Annuar said PN’s negotiations remained firmly under its own banner.
“We are negotiating under the name of Perikatan Nasional. There is no question of using the BN logo or anything else. Once everything is ready, we will make a formal announcement,” he said.
Annuar set Thursday as the target for finalising the full list of candidates and seat distributions.
“Our target is Thursday. Once this committee completes its work, we will likely convene a main council meeting to endorse the final list,” he said.
The 56-seat Johor State Legislative Assembly was dissolved on June 1, paving the way for the 16th state election, with polling set for July 11, nomination day on June 27 and early voting on July 7. – NST
