ISKANDAR PUTERI: A rapidly growing population in southern Johor calls for the state to look into increasing the number of state seats, says Liew Chin Tong.
The Perling assemblyman pointed out that his state constituency had 102,621 registered voters as of Oct 9, 2022, a number he believes has since increased.
In comparison, 17 out of 26 parliamentary seats in Johor each have fewer voters than Perling alone, he pointed out when debating the state Budget 2026 at the state assembly sitting here on Monday (Nov 17).
"Seven state seats in southern Johor – Perling, Permas, Johor Jaya, Puteri Wangsa, Tiram, Kota Iskandar and Skudai – each have more than 100,000 voters.
"It is time for the state government to add more state seats in southern Johor so representation matches the population size.
"Increasing the number of seats is not only fair but timely for a region that is rapidly developing," he said.
He also urged that the cooperation between Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Harapan not be seen as a "political marriage" but as a chance to build a new political order, similar to major shifts in the nation in the past.
"This is not unusual because Malaysia has experienced changes in political order before.
"The transition from first prime minister Tunku Abdul Rahman to Tun Abdul Razak Hussein in 1970 as an example. Tun Abdul Razak introduced sweeping reforms in a short period, from forming Barisan and launching the New Economic Policy to positioning Asean as a neutral zone.
"While not everyone agreed with Tun Abdul Razak 's policies, they became foundational ideas that guided Barisan administrations under various prime ministers for decades," he said Liew said Malaysia has now arrived at a point where a new political framework is needed for future generations and this should underscore the current Barisan-Pakatan cooperation.
