Noor Azmi: I’m not giving up seat
BAGAN Serai MP Datuk Dr Noor Azmi Ghazali has denied rumours of him offering his seat to Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
He said he had never met nor contacted Anwar to discuss it.
“Not me. I have not had a meeting with him, nor was I contacted by anybody on his side.
“So far, I remain an independent candidate and my focus is still on Bagan Serai,” he told reporters at the Parliament lobby yesterday.
Dr Noor Azmi also said he would hold on to the seat he retained at the 14th General Election, regardless of who asked him to vacate.
It was previously reported that an independent MP from Perak was willing to give up his seat for Anwar to contest.
The report also claimed that the former Barisan Nasional lawmaker had made the offer in a recent meeting with Anwar.
Dr Noor Azmi retained his Bagan Serai seat on a Barisan ticket in GE14 before he announced his departure from Umno on June 24.
Another Barisan- turnedindependent lawmaker in Perak is Bukit Gantang MP Datuk Syed Abu Hussin Hafiz Syed Abdul Fasal, who walked out of Umno two days after Dr Noor Azmi.
Meanwhile, Khairy Jamaluddin said Sabah Umno can still work on state-centric issues with the new opposition bloc without leaving Umno and Barisan Nasional.
The former Umno Youth chief and Rembau MP expressed hope that Sabah Umno would remain with the party and the coalition.
“Even if there is a collaboration between Sabah Umno and Gabungan Bersatu Sabah (GBS), this should not cause them to leave Barisan.
“Maybe the group can serve as a platform for them to pursue issues relevant to Sabah, but that does not mean they need to leave Umno,” he told newsmen at the Parliament lobby.
Sabah Umno chief Datuk Hajiji Noor said on Tuesday that a new opposition bloc known as GBS would be formed, which signified the end of Sabah Barisan.
He said Umno was still with Barisan but the coalition no longer existed in Sabah.
On his resignation from Rejimen Askar Wataniah (Territorial Army Regiment), Khairy said he submitted his letter yesterday and was awaiting a response.