IPOH, Nov 18 — Perak Umno liaison chief Datuk Saarani Mohamad today said that the Gerik parliamentary seat ‘belongs’ to Umno as the party has contested and held the seat by tradition.

Saarani expressed confidence that Perikatan Nasional’s (PN) component parties, namely PAS and Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu), will support this stance.

"Before we entered the alliance under PN, there was an understanding between Umno and PAS in Muafakat Nasional (MN).

"And now, if we look at the last two by-elections in Chini and Slim, all three parties in PN usually agree that the party that contests a seat traditionally will be given priority.

"So I believe it will be the same in Gerik where Umno has contested the seat traditionally,” he told reporters when met at the launch of a Perak government initiative with redONE at the State Secretariat Building here.

Saarani also said it would be noble of Opposition parties if they do not contest the Gerik by-election.

He said giving the Barisan Nasional (BN) candidate a walkover will do away with the need for parties to campaign and meet people, as this will likely contribute to the spread of Covid-19.

"Furthermore, the outcome of the by-election will not affect the federal government as a whole. One seat won’t change anything,” he explained.

He also said that the Gerik by-election is inevitable as the Election Act states that any seat that falls vacant in a period of less than three years after a general election must be filled.

"The three-year requirement will only be reached next May. So we can’t avoid the by-election,” he added.

Meanwhile, Bersatu deputy president Datuk Seri Ahmad Faizal Azumu, when asked today whether his party will refrain from contesting the seat on account of Covid-19, replied: "I’m not saying that”.

"We will always discuss it with Umno and PAS before coming to any decision,” the Perak mentri besar stressed.

Gerik incumbent Datuk Hasbullah Osman, 63, died of a heart attack on Monday at Raub Hospital in Pahang.

He first ran as a people’s representative in the 11th general election (GE11) in 2004, where he won the Temenggor state seat against Mohd Aun Yob Abas of Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) with a majority of 4,666 votes, and defended the seat in GE12 by defeating Moon Akau from PKR with a majority of 4,617 votes.

In GE13, he contested the Gerik parliamentary seat and defeated Norhayati Kasim from PAS with a majority of 6,216 votes. He defended the seat in GE14 with a majority of 5,528 votes against PAS candidate Mohd Dahalan Ismail.

The Gerik parliamentary constituency is located in Hulu Perak, and has two state constituencies, namely Temenggor and Pengkalan Hulu.