Negri Speaker expected to be from Pribumi
SEREMBAN: Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia will likely be given the post of the Negri Sembilan assembly Speaker despite it not winning any of the six seats it contested in the state.
The move, observers believed, was to recognise Pribumi as an important partner in Pakatan Harapan and to appease party members who were upset at being given fewer seats than what the party had initially wanted.
It is also to “compensate” Pribumi which had protested against being given seats seen as Barisan Nasional strongholds.
Mentri Besar Aminuddin Harun, who was sworn in on Saturday, had also indicated that Pribumi would have a place in his administration.
However, he did not elaborate on the matter yesterday.
PKR contested 12 state seats in Negri Sembilan followed by DAP (11), Amanah (seven) and Pribumi (six).
DAP made a clean sweep of all seats it contested while PKR won six and Amanah three.
Pakatan won 20 of the 36 seats in the state assembly.
It is learnt that PKR and DAP would each have four members in the new exco line-up. Amanah will have two.
PKR is expected to name its assemblyman for Ampangan Dr Mohamad Rafie Ab Malek, Ismail Ahmad (Labu), Ravi Munusamy (Sri Tanjung) and Mohamad Nazaruddin Sabtu (Pilah) as its choices for the state exco.
All except Ravi are first-term assemblymen.
DAP is likely to propose Bahau assemblyman Teo Kok Seong, Chew Seh Yong (Lobak), Veerapan Superamaniam ( Repah) and Mary Josephine Prittam Singh (Rahang).
Teo was first elected Bahau wakil rakyat in 2008 and then also went on to become Rasah MP in the 2013 polls.
Veerapan is now into his third term as Repah assemblyman while Mary Josephine and Chew are serving their second term.
State DAP chief Anthony Loke, who won both the Seremban parliamentary and Chennah state seats, is not expected to be named in the exco line-up as he may be given a federal post.
Amanah will probably name its assemblymen for Paroi, Mohamad Taufek Ghani, and Bakri Sawir (Klawang).
Mohamad, who was previously with PAS, had served as the Paroi assemblyman when he won in 2008 but lost the seat in the 2013 polls.