Kuala lumpur: Pakatan Harapan (PH) is confident that avoiding clashes with Barisan Nasional (BN) and Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) will be key to securing victory in the 17th Sabah state election. PH secretary-general Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail has been tasked by PH chairman Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to lead negotiations with BN and GRS to avoid or minimise seat clashes among coalition partners.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, negotiations with BN have been successful, resulting in no seat clashes between the two parties, while discussions with GRS have also been concluded. Saifuddin mentioned that the optimal outcome in seat negotiations is to avoid clashes altogether, but if that is not feasible, minimising them remains the objective to strengthen their chances of winning. The negotiations were finalised about a week ago, after arranging for GRS to meet with Datuk Seri Anwar in Kuala Lumpur, followed by a meeting with BN.
Despite the finalisation of negotiations, Saifuddin acknowledged that there are still requests from all parties regarding seat allocations for the state election. In the past couple of days, there have been one or two requests from BN, GRS, and PH. He expressed confidence that until nomination day, there is still room to manage these requests. Saifuddin concluded that the negotiations with BN and GRS have been resolved.
He further elaborated on the demanding nature of the seat negotiation process, which required considerable time. However, his experience since 1999 has eased the process. The primary goal of the negotiation process is to avoid clashes as much as possible to improve their chances of winning. Saifuddin's role mainly involves conducting the seat negotiations, which he described as time-consuming and highly pressured.
Nomination for the state election is scheduled for Saturday, with polling set for November 29. The Sabah State Assembly has 79 seats, with 73 contested and six appointed assembly members. Ten Parti Keadilan Rakyat candidates are reportedly set to contest, representing part of the 23 seats allocated to PH in the state election.