Rantau candidate: PKR has several names, says Anwar

PKR president Anwar Ibrahim said today the names of several people have been proposed as the Pakatan Harapan candidate for the upcoming Rantau state by-election, but no decision has been made yet.

The Port Dickson MP said PKR would discuss the matter in detail at a meeting of the PKR political bureau tomorrow or on Wednesday.

“We are ready (to face the Rantau by-election) and we will have a meeting tomorrow or on Wednesday. There is a list of names,” he told a press conference after a town hall forum on the "Digital Native Agenda" in Kuala Lumpur. Also present was Communications and Multimedia Minister Gobind Singh Deo.

The Rantau by-election has been necessitated by the Federal Court dismissal of an appeal filed by Mohamad Hasan to set aside the Nov 16 Seremban Election Court decision declaring his unopposed victory in the 14th general election as null and void.

In GE14, Mohamad was declared the winner of the seat after his potential Harapan opponent, Dr S Streram of PKR, was prohibited from entering the nomination centre to submit his nomination papers because he did not have a pass issued by the Election Commission (EC).

The EC, in a statement today, said it would determine the by-election date at a special meeting on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, when asked on the possibility of PAS and Umno contesting under a single banner in the 15th general election, Anwar responded: “Of course, they are free to do that, it's okay and we'll see and respond accordingly.

“I’m not too concerned about their initiative. They seem encouraged by the results of one by-election, but they forgot they lost many seats earlier including Port Dickson.”

Yesterday, Sinar Harian reported that Umno and PAS may use a common logo in the next general election in the light of their successful cooperation in the recent Cameron Highlands and Semenyih by-elections.

In Putrajaya, PKR secretary-general Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said the party would take into account all views and suggestions before selecting its candidate.

He said objections pertaining to any potential candidate could be made through the state leadership councils for forwarding to the PKR political bureau.

In Kota Bharu, Bersatu deputy president and Kedah Menteri Besar Mukhriz Mahathir said Harapan would not take it easy with the Rantau by-election as it would be up against Umno which was represented there by its deputy president Mohamad, who is the former menteri besar of Negeri Sembilan.

He spoke to reporters after attending the investiture in conjunction with the 49th birthday last year of Sultan Muhammad V at Istana Balai Besar.

Mukhriz received the Ahli Darjah Seri Paduka Jiwa Mahkota Kelantan Yang Amat Mulia (SJMK) award which carries the title "Datuk".

- Bernama