JOHOR BARU: Johor Amanah is prepared to fight for Johor State Assembly (DUN) seats in the upcoming state or general elections, says its deputy chairman Dzulkefly Ahmad.
He said the party aims to field candidates for a minimum of 12 to 20 seats out of the 56 available in Johor’s state assembly, with or without an alliance with Barisan Nasional or the original Pakatan Harapan coalition.
“We have identified key state seats that align with our objectives, alongside our commitment to retain the Simpang Jeram seat,” he said in a statement here on Monday (Nov 4).
He added that Johor Amanah will present this decision to the party’s central leadership as well as to the Pakatan coalition leaders, both at the state and national levels.
Dzulkefly also acknowledged the possibility of three-way contests between Pakatan, Barisan, and Perikatan Nasional in the upcoming election in Johor.
He added that Johor Amanah's readership disagrees with Barisan Johor's apparent lack of interest in forming a unity government in the state, despite Barisan’s recent by-election victory in the Mahkota state seat.
“We reiterate that this decision stems from the absence of any discussions about a unity government from Barisan, even as of the date of this press statement,” Dzulkefly said.
Meanwhile, Johor Umno Youth chief Noor Azleen Ambros said that the youth wing believes the recent statement made by Johor Amanah was done unilaterally and hastily, without first consulting the leadership of the Pakatan coalition regarding this matter.
“In this regard, the Johor Umno Youth also contends that this stance is by no means binding and is, in fact, contrary to the spirit of unity and is very insincere in intention,” he said.
Earlier, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim was reported saying that cooperation between Pakatan and Barisan, including Umno, should continue for the sake of stability and the future.
He added that considering the fact that no political party could secure a comfortable majority to form the government, it is fair that the unity government be retained.
