State polls: Anything is possible in politics

27 Jul 2023 08:45am

Amirudin addressing the crowd during Sinar’s Town Hall Rakyat at Karangkraf Complex, here, on Tuesday.

SHAH ALAM – With the state polls taking place in less than a month, Selangor Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari expresses that anything is possible in politics, even if there may be a change in the Prime Minister’s position.

He said this when asked if there was a possibility that the state polls would lead to a shift in the federal level, should the opposition party Perikatan Nasional (PN) manage to secure Selangor and Negeri Sembilan.

“On paper, it is not possible, but anything is possible in politics. So, I cannot deny it, but logically, it should not happen.

“The agreement signed between parties in the unity government was an open agreement and everyone understood it. It was also the most effective solution to address the instabilities faced in the past years.

“It is also the first time since 2008 that a federal government has a two-third majority was signed,” Amirudin said, adding that the reconciliation was the best opportunity to restore the country’s stability.

Amirudin said this when he addressed the crowd during Sinar’s Town Hall Rakyat hosted by actor Azhar Sulaiman at Karangkraf Complex, here, on Tuesday.

Amirudin pointed out that there were no signs that there would be a political imbalance following the state polls, but he called for young politicians from all parties to forget the past and move towards a better Malaysia.

“Let’s move towards a more mature, democratic Malaysia together. That is my hope, but sometimes a hope is just a hope, but as long as we’re alive, we should always have hope,” he said.

When asked why several parliamentary seats such as Sabak Bernam, Sungai Besar, Tanjung Karang and Kuala Selangor were claimed by PN in the 15th General Election (GE15) despite state government providing various incentives and aids, Amirudin pointed out it could be derived from the difference in voting trend.

“During GE15, PN was a part of the Federal Government so maybe that is why the voters leaned towards PN, or it could also be because they no longer trust BN (Barisan Nasional) so PN was the hope for the formation of federal government.

“However, this time, the challenge is to form the state government hence judgments should be made from those aspects,” he said.

As of now, Amirudin said 71 per cent of Selangorians believed that the state government was on the right track and might vote for us.

“It is not beneficial for voters (who are angry at federal government) to channel the anger at state government as state polls will directly impact their daily lives.

“This is a chance to boost our livelihood, making things easy for us as well as developing our state especially through good relations with the federal government,” he said, adding that Selangor aimed to contribute 30 per cent to the gross domestic product (GDP) at the national level.