SEPANG, Sept 23 — PAS is ready to cooperate with anyone at all including Umno who will contest Port Dickson’s by-election (PRK) to ensure Parti Keadilan Rakyat’s (PKR) chief Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim will not have an easy win.

PAS Central General Election director Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar, who is also Terengganu Mentri Besar, said PAS was ready to field its candidate to prevent a walkover for Anwar but it depended on Umno’s decision.

“I believe there will be efforts to avoid a multi-cornered contest in the Port Dickson by-election. Regardless, before the nomination date, we can still discuss. I believe we can settle it in a good way.

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“PAS is willing to cooperate regardless of whom will be the candidate, (whether) Umno or PAS or a third party who will be fielding a candidate. The Opposition should be given space to work together for this by-election,” he told reporters after attending the flagging off of the Lombok Humanitarian Mission 2.0 at the KL International Airport here today.

He said this when asked to comment on whether PAS would cooperate if Umno placed its candidate in the Port Dickson PRK.

The Port Dickson parliamentary seat was vacated by incumbent Datuk Danyal Balagopal Abdullah, 68, to allow Anwar, who is also the PKR president-elect, to contest and return to the Dewan Rakyat.

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The Election Commission fixed the Port Dickson’s PRK on Oct 13, the nomination day was set on Sept 29 and the polling day would be on Oct 9.

The Malaysian People’s Party and independent candidates announced that they would be contesting in the Port Dickson PRK against Anwar.

Ahmad Shamsuri, meanwhile, described the Port Dickson PRK as wasteful and only played with the feelings of the people as it was deliberately held to fulfil the aspiration of one person to become prime minister.

“It is a forced election... I see what happened in the Kajang PRK which was purportedly to place the candidate for the post of Mentri Besar (Selangor) in the early stages, in the end who became the mentri besar? Someone else became the mentri besar... This is a waste which does not achieve the objective.

“I do not know the situation in the Port Dickson PRK which was said to be for the prime minister’s post... We do not know how it can be realised,” he said.

On the Lombok Humanitarian 2.0, PAS Relief director Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor said that 31 participants would join the mission which would bring about 20 tonnes of food supply, providing 50 water tanks to locals as well as helping to build 17 temporary houses.

He said the mission which began today until Sept 27 would also help local residents, especially in North Lombok to build five schools and seven surau.

“We are raising funds to build a mosque in Lombok as more than 1,000 mosques had been destroyed in the earthquake in July and August. We hope that government-linked companies in Terengganu will provide donations and assistance to build 10 earthquake-resistant mosques,” he said. — Bernama