KOTA KINABALU, July 19 — Parti Amanah Negara (Amanah) is looking to contest five state seats in Sabah for the upcoming state election, with one seat already confirmed under the Pakatan Harapan-Barisan Nasional (PH-BN) seat negotiations, said party president Datuk Seri Mohamad Sabu.

Speaking to the media after launching Amanah’s election machinery here today, Mohammad said the party remains fully committed to working with its PH partners despite mobilising its own grassroots campaign.

“First of all, Pakatan Harapan will move as one,” he stressed.

“But when it comes to activating our Amanah members, we have to deploy them ourselves. We will cooperate fully with all component parties,” he said.

He said Amanah is targeting around five seats, including Sulabayan, Tanjung Aru, and Lumadan.

Asked if contesting in Warisan’s stronghold Sulabayan would be a risky move, Mohamad responded that the matter remains speculative for now.

“It’s not certain we will get that seat. Whatever is decided later will be based on negotiations. For now, we can only mention it as a possibility,” he said.

On whether the seat for Tanjung Aru has been confirmed for Amanah, he explained: “Tanjung Aru has been given to PH but that does not mean Amanah is guaranteed the seat yet. PH includes Keadilan, Amanah, DAP and UPKO. The final decision will be made once party leaders sign off.”

Addressing Sabah’s growing preference for local parties, Mat Sabu said Amanah will ensure that all its candidates are Sabahan, and will ramp up grassroots efforts to build local trust and visibility.

“All our candidates will be local Sabahan faces. Once our election machinery is in place, we will launch more community-focused campaigns to show that we stand with the people of Sabah,” he said. — The Borneo Post