‘SIGN OF PARTIES WORKING TOGETHER’

Polls may be litmus test for Umno, Pas to merge in facing PH, says PPBM youth chief

THE Sungai Kandis byelection is seen as a testing ground for possible political cooperation between Umno and Pas. Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia Youth chief Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman said this observation came from Pas giving way to Barisan Nasional to contest the state seat.

“If Pakatan Harapan does not win big in this by-election, it will be a green light for Umno and Pas to merge and go against PH. (Therefore), this is not just a byelection, but a (litmus test for democracy) following the 14th General Election.

“Hence, we need to work hard in our campaign and prioritise the people’s welfare,” he said after a function at the Ar-Rahimin Mosque in Kampung Telok Menegon here on Thursday night.

Present were Selangor Menteri Besar Amirudin Shari and PKR’s Sungai Kandis candidate, Mohd Zawawi Ahmad Mughni.

Syed Saddiq, who is youth and sports minister, said PPBM would continue to support PKR.

The Sungai Kandis by-election was called following the death of assemblyman Mat Shuhaimi Shafiei from cancer on July 2.

Zawawi is contesting against BN’s Datuk Lokman Noor Adam and independent candidate Murthy Krishnasamy. Polling has been fixed for Aug 4.

On a separate matter, Syed Saddiq said discussions with Attorney-General Tommy Thomas on lowering Malaysia’s voting age to 18 had concluded.

“The discussions involved amendments to the law, and I want to ensure that the matter is finalised before the next election. We are currently finalising the proposed amendment before it is brought to the cabinet and tabled in Parliament.”

Syed Saddiq said he had received positive feedback on the matter from Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.