SHAH ALAM - Leaders of opposition Pakatan Harapan (PH) pact in Selangor will meet on Wednesday (Feb 7) to begin seat negotiations for the upcoming polls, following an embarrassing public bickering last week in the rich state that some thought could fall back to Barisan Nasional (BN).
The discussions on who-should-stand-where in the 56-seat Selangor legislature is expected to be complicated.
This is because a former state ally, Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS), has bolted from a previous opposition alliance, though its local leaders remain in the Selangor cabinet.
PH leaders are worried that PAS will play the spoiler by ensuring three-cornered fights in most of the Selangor seats that would hand victory to BN.
Additionally, PH's two new member parties are pushing to contest in many seats.
PH has already decided on the lineup for the 22 parliamentary seats for the general election, which is expected to be held in the first half of this year.
Selangor is especially prized by both sides of the political divide as it is Malaysia's most industrialised state and collects the highest annual taxes for its coffers.
Selangor contributes more than a fifth to the national GDP (gross domestic product). This makes it the single biggest economic contributor among the 13 Malaysian states and three federal territories including Kuala Lumpur.
PH consists of Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) led by opposition chief Anwar Ibrahim, Chinese-majority Democratic Action Party (DAP) and two newer groups, Parti Amanah Negara and Tun Mahathir Mohamad's Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (PPBM).
The Selangor chief of Amanah, Mr Izham Hashim, last week called Selangor Menteri Besar and PKR leader Azmin Ali "a joker"who is not fit to lead the state, after the latter said state leaders had agreed on most of the seat distribution.
This was worsened after Selangor DAP chief Tony Pua said there had been no meeting at all to discuss the seat allocations.
Amanah, seen as a junior partner in PH, is keen to get more seats in Selangor.
PKR Selangor Women's chief Haniza Talha told the media that its allies would be given more seats if they could prove they have winnable candidates and strong election machinery.
More senior PH leaders quickly stepped in to stop the bitter debate, saying disagreements should be settled behind closed doors.
Reflecting this mantra, Mr Azmin told reporters on Tuesday (Feb 6): "All discussions and negotiations must be done behind closed doors until a decision is reached by consensus."
The PH parties hold a two-seat majority in the 56-seat state assembly, with a total of 29 seats (PKR 13, DAP 14 and Amanah 2).
PAS has 13 seats and BN 12, while two wards are held by independent assemblymen.
