PKR seeks to contest more seats in GE15

SHAH ALAM: PKR is on a quest to be the “largest and strongest” party in the next general election, its secretary-general Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said yesterday.

The Kulim-Bandar Baharu MP said the party will defend all 48 parliamentary and 73 state seats it won in the GE14 and will negotiate for more seats to contest in GE15 with its Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition partners.

“We have decided to contest all the seats that Keadilan won. We also agreed that the party will continue to negotiate with PH component parties to get additional seats for PKR. This is so that Keadilan can emerge as the largest and strongest party. Our direction is clear,” he said in his opening speech for the PKR Youth congress here this morning.

Saifuddin Nasution said the decision was made during the party’s leadership retreat at Grand Dorsett hotel in Subang Jaya a few months ago.

He later clarified in a news conference that the party has yet to discuss the matter with its allies in the PH presidential council.

PKR contested in 71 parliamentary seats in the last general election.

Saifuddin also told reporters that PKR has decided what it can offer voters in GE15, adding that they deal with battling corruption, rebuilding the economy as well as ensuring a social security net for the people.

He said the ideas were fleshed out during the party retreat in Johor Baharu last March.

“For GE15, we think we should no longer ask for sympathy or attacking some policies. We should offer the solution for the problems that people have,” he said.