Johor BN to submit only one name

JOHOR BARU: Johor Barisan Nasional will submit only one name for the Tanjung Piai parliamentary by-election to its central leadership, says its chairman Datuk Hasni Mohammad.

“I have already met with the state MCA and MIC leadership, as well as from PAS, to get their feedback and views on the candidate selection, ” he said.

“The Barisan central leadership will be having a meeting on the matter and I expect the announcement of our candidate for the Tanjung Piai by-election on Oct 3, ” he said here yesterday.

Hasni said the selection of the candidate was made through discussion and consensus from everyone involved.

The by-election could also see the debut of Parti Bumiputra Perkasa Malaysia (Putra) after receiving the approval from the Registrar of Societies on May 8.

Its vice-president Mohd Khairul Azam Abdul Aziz said that the party would be officially launched today at Kampung Baru in Kuala Lumpur.

He claimed that despite being a new party, Putra already has 118 divisions nationwide.

He added that the party also has 5,000 supporters who were expected to attend its official launch.

“There are suggestions from our members and from outside the party for us to take part in the by-election, but we have yet to discuss it among our leadership, ” he said.

Khairul Azam added that the party’s decision to stand in the by-election would be based on the announcement by the Election Commission (EC).

Meanwhile, Nordin Othman, who previously was a candidate in the Tanjung Piai parliamentary seat, is staying out of the by-election.

He said those thinking of contesting must be realistic.

The 55-year-old added that he was the sole candidate from the Pan Malaysian Islamic Front (Berjasa), which contested under the PAS banner through the Gagasan Sejahtera in the 14th General Election.

Gagasan Sejahtera is a coalition made up of PAS, Parti Ikatan Bangsa Malaysia, Berjasa and Parti Cinta Malaysia formed before GE14.

“I will not contest in the by-election because historically, Tanjung Piai is usually contested by MCA and they have won it many times before.

“Tanjung Piai needs a local leader who has a proven track record and knows the sentiment of the community there, ” he said.

The Tanjung Piai parliamentary seat became vacant following the death of its incumbent Datuk Dr Md Farid, who was Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department.

He passed away from a heart attack at Pontian Hospital on Sept 21.

Md Farid, 42, who was also Tanjung Piai Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia division vice-chief, won the seat in the last general election after beating MCA’s Datuk Seri Wee Jeck Seng and Nordin with a majority of 524 votes.

The EC is expected to announce the date of the Tanjung Piai by-election after holding a special meeting on Oct 1.