Amanah confident of winning all seven seats in Melaka polls - Mohamad Sabu

ALOR GAJAH - Parti Amanah Negara (Amanah) is confident of winning all seven state seats it is contesting in the 16th Melaka state election, with party president Datuk Seri Mohamad Sabu attributing the optimism to young voters' support for Pakatan Harapan (PH) and the coalition's decision to field younger candidates.

He said the party was confident of securing victories across all seven constituencies.

“Amanah is contesting seven seats and we are confident of winning all seven, InsyaAllah,” he said after a group ‘ceramah’ at Pengkalan Balak, last night.

Also present was PH candidate from Amanah for the Kuala Linggi state seat Muhammad Mukhlisul Mubin Julasapiyah, who is the youngest candidate contesting in this election.

Apart from Kuala Linggi, Amanah is fielding candidates in Bukit Katil, Durian Tunggal, Telok Mas, Merlimau, Sungai Rambai and Taboh Naning.

The candidates are Adly Zahari in Bukit Katil, Datuk Ashraf Mukhlis Minghat in Durian Tunggal, Captain (Rtd) Mohamad Jaafar in Telok Mas, Rahayu Hamzah in Merlimau, Aminuddin Abdul Jalil in Sungai Rambai and Junainah Sahat in Taboh Naning.

Commenting on PH's decision to field eight young candidates in the election, Mohamad said their selection was based on their qualifications and capabilities, while providing younger people with an opportunity to take on leadership responsibilities earlier.

“We are bringing them forward from the outset. Criticism is normal, young people are criticised and older people are too. If age is the yardstick, I myself first became a candidate at the age of 27,” he said.

He stressed that bringing younger candidates into the contest did not mean experienced politicians were being sidelined, adding that the coalition needed to combine the strengths of candidates across different age groups, including women.

On the contest in Bukit Katil, where Adly is seeking to retain his seat, Mohamad said no constituency could be regarded as a safe seat. However, he expressed confidence that voters would make their assessments before casting their ballots.

Adly, who is also Melaka PH chairman, faces a four-cornered contest against Ridzuan Sarif of Perikatan Nasional, Dr Aliza Che Amran of Parti Bersama Malaysia (Bersama) and independent candidate Abu Bakar Sabudin.

The Election Commission (EC) has set Nov 14 as polling day for the Melaka state election, while early voting will take place on Nov 10.