PH-BN using mixed formulas, not solely the status quo - Mahfuz

ALOR SETAR - Kedah Pakatan Harapan (PH) and Barisan Nasional (BN) is combining the best formula in allocating the seats to ensure the Unity Government wins in the upcoming state election.

Kedah PH chairman Datuk Mahfuz Omar said the final negotiation process would involve four seats and only 10 per cent of negotiation left before it was concluded.

He said the negotiation involving 32 state legislative assembly seats had already been agreed upon in the spirit of unity.

“We are near the end, there are only three or four seats up for negotiation before we are done with it.

“The coalition at the Central level has successfully reached an agreement, based on the parameters all parties in the coalition need to follow,” he said when contacted today.

Mahfuz said the status quo was no longer the main benchmark in allocating seats but instead combined various factors that could bring victory to either PH or BN candidates.

“According to the parameters at the Central level, we still have room for discussion. There are areas where we utilise the status quo like the existing seats that PH or BN had already won before.

“We did not include those seats in the negotiation process.

“PH would not want Bandar Baharu or Sungai Tiang seats (in which BN had already won) so in this regard we concede to them. The other seats are open for negotiation, depending on the factor that will contribute to victory,” he said.

The Parti Amanah Negara (Amanah) vice-president said every negotiation process was conducted in the spirit of unity, in which after each party expressed their demands for the seats involved, they would hold a discussion.

“The situation is like this, all parties in the PH-BN coalition should be a connecting pole to reach the fruit at the top of the tree. They need each other, PH needs BN to be a connecting pole and vice versa.

“If one of the poles is damaged then we have to fix it and see how it could be connected. If the blade at the end of the connected pole is not sharp then we need to find a sharper blade,” he said.

Mahfuz, however, did not reveal the distribution formula that would be used in the state election, whether it was 60 to 40 per cent of allocation or an equal distribution.

“We have to wait first because negotiations are still ongoing. How many seats there are for each coalition will be finalised later.

“PH and BN have their own demands. So, we will solve it in our own ways. That is why the negotiations have proceeded well and only three or four seats are left. The negotiations on all the demands were discussed harmoniously,” he reiterated.

Mahfuz refused to reveal the areas the coalition was still negotiating for. The seats allocation negotiation was expected to conclude mid-June.

“In regards to which area it is, that is a secret. I cannot reveal it yet. I do believe that the allocation for all 36 seats will be finalised on Sultan of Kedah’s birthday (June 18),” he said.

Yesterday, Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM) Senior Lecturer in Politics and International Relations Professor Dr Mohd Azizuddin Mohd Sani described the allocation of seats based on the 19-17 formula for PH-BN coalition in Kedah as fair.

Meanwhile, Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) political analyst Professor Dr Sivamurugan Pandian suggested an equal distribution or 60-40 percent of distribution or according to their respective strengths for BN or PH in Kedah.

Mahfuz described their opinions as one of the best bases to be refined at the last minute of the negotiations.

“It's a good foundation and we do consider all the aspects but the discussion is coming to an end soon, we will announce it after everything is completed," he said.