All parties just about ready
Candidates list mostly finalised as dissolution of Parliament nears
PETALING JAYA: Umno is ready except for a few loose ends, MCA has all but settled matters, Gerakan is in its final stages.
With the dissolution of Parliament now just days away, most Barisan Nasional parties have finalised their lists of candidates and seats. A handful and several in the Opposition are rushing to finish theirs.
Umno secretarygeneral Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor said Umno had finalised its list of candidates, although it still had a few “loose ends” to tie up before the names were announced.
“What needs to be sorted out has been cleared. Umno is a party that is big on loyalty.
“Unlike in the Opposition, there is nothing much that needs to be resolved because members respect and adhere to decisions made by the leadership,” he said.
Asked when the candidates would be announced, Tengku Adnan quipped that the media seemed more anxious to know than even the party members.
“Just be a bit more patient. You know it’s going to be soon,” he said. Umno is expected to go for the 121 seats it contested in the last general election.
Last week, several newspapers, quoting sources, reported that Barisan might unveil its candidates on Monday but the Prime Minister’s Office later issued a statement, clarifying that it was just speculation.
In 2013, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak unveiled the list of Barisan’s parliamentary candidates on April 16 – 13 days after dissolution and four days before nomination day.
The names of Barisan candidates for the state seats were announced in the following days by the respec tive state Barisan chiefs.
Sources said that Najib would likely unveil the candidates list in stages this time around, beginning with names for seats in constituencies where there were no major “issues”.
MCA president Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said the party was nearly done with its list.
“We are almost there. There are just a few seats that need to be finalised,” he told a press conference after launching the Malaysian Driving Institutes Association’s (PIMA) 18th annual meeting here.
The Transport Minister, however, declined to reveal which seats were in contention.
Previously, Liow said MCA would be contesting 90 state and 40 parliamentary seats and that 50% would be new candidates.
It is understood that MCA is in talks with Barisan component parties Umno and Gerakan on potential seat swaps.
These include the parliamentary seat of Bandar Tun Razak, which had been a Barisan stronghold until 2008 when former Selangor Mentri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim won it under a PKR ticket.
Both Umno and MCA have expressed their desire to contest the seat this time around.
Last month, Liow said MCA would not let go of Bandar Tun Razak unless there was a swap with Umno.
Gerakan president Datuk Seri Mah Siew Keong said his party had finalised its list of candidates and was now awaiting the final decision from the Barisan supreme council.
Mah said Gerakan was also in the final stages of seat swap negotiations with “a few” component parties.
“As for our list of candidates, we have compiled our feedback and submitted our recommendations to the Barisan leadership,” said Mah, adding that Gerakan would contest in more than 40 parliamentary and state seats.
In January, Mah was quoted as saying that Gerakan was offering four seats to be swapped with its coalition partners.
Earlier this month, Penang Gerakan chairman Teng Chang Yeow hinted at the possibility of a swap between Gerakan and MCA.
He revealed that discussions to swap the Batu Kawan and Bayan Baru parliamentary seats had been going on for three years. Bayan Baru has traditionally been contested by the MCA and Batu Kawan by Gerakan.
Bayan Baru is currently held by Sim Tze Tzin of PKR and Batu Kawan by Kasthuriraani Patto of DAP.
PKR vicepresident Tian Chua said the party had finalised its list and was expecting Parliament to be dissolved next week. The party will contest 51 seats while Pakatan Harapan component parties Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia, DAP and Amanah would contest 52, 35 and 27 seats respectively.
PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang said his party would play the kingmaker’s role if the party could win at least 45 parliamentary seats.
The party will be contesting 130 parliamentary seats and has formed a new coalition called Gagasan Sejahtera, comprising Parti Ikatan Bangsa Malaysia, PanMalaysia Islamic Front (Berjasa), Parti Harapan Malaysia and Parti Cinta Malaysia.
He said PAS’ candidates would be approved by the party’s Syura Council, the Islamist party’s highest decisionmaking body.
“We will choose only those who never miss prayers, know what is wrong and right, are goodnatured and uphold high moral values,” he added.