KUALA LUMPUR: Two newly admitted Perikatan Nasional component parties, Parti Pejuang Tanah Air (Pejuang) and Parti Cinta Malaysia (known as Parti Wawasan Negara), have submitted their preferred seats for consideration in the upcoming Johor state election.
Perikatan election director Datuk Seri Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor said the matter would be discussed as part of ongoing negotiations on seat allocations.
"Each party has submitted its own list. They (Wawasan and Pejuang) have already submitted theirs, and we will negotiate.
"My role is simply to negotiate. The final decision will be made by Perikatan (the top leadership)," he said when met at PAS headquarters on Tuesday (June 23) following a meeting to discuss preparations for the state election.
He said discussions on seat allocations among Perikatan's component parties were proceeding smoothly and would continue on Wednesday morning (June 24).
Sanusi also dismissed speculation that Perikatan might contest under the Barisan Nasional logo, saying the matter "does not arise at all" and that discussions were focused solely on using the coalition's own logo.
"We will use the Perikatan logo and the discussions are about that, nothing else,” he said.
Previously, Perikatan announced that Wawasan and Pejuang had been accepted as new component parties of the coalition.
Its chairman, Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar, said the decision was reached during an emergency meeting of Perikatan's supreme council on Monday night (June 22), attended by leaders from PAS, Bersatu, Gerakan and the Malaysian Indian People's Party (MIPP).
Wawasan emerged from Parti Cinta Malaysia after the party was taken over by former Bersatu deputy president Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin and his supporters. Its application to join Perikatan was subsequently approved.
Pejuang was founded by former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad after he and his supporters were expelled from Bersatu. The party is now led by his son, Datuk Seri Mukhriz Mahathir.
Meanwhile, asked about Bersatu’s claim of Perikatan pushing through Wawasan’s admission despite unresolved issues involving the Registrar of Societies (RoS), Sanusi said the matter had already been decided through a vote at the coalition's meeting.
This follows a statement made by Bersatu vice-president Datuk Seri Ahmad Faizal Azumu, saying that the decision to accept Wawasan was made despite concerns over its compliance with the Societies Act 1966 and other relevant laws.
"I do not wish to comment on that because the matter has already been decided at the meeting.
“My role is only to handle the seat allocation discussions. Everything is fine and proceeding smoothly," Sanusi said.
