SEREMBAN, March 7 — Pakatan Harapan (PH) has a big chance of winning the Rantau state by-election on April 13 as the voter demography in the area is not the same as that in Semenyih, Selangor, said Negri Sembilan PH chairman Datuk Seri Aminuddin Harun.
The Negri Sembilan mentri besar said he was confident that by adopting an effective strategy, PH would be able to wrest the seat from Barisan Nasional (BN).
“In politics, we cannot rely on perception only but must look at the demography and geography of each place. PH will be the underdog, but I feel we have a big chance (of winning),” he said after a ceremony in recognition of pensioners of the state government administration here today.
Aminuddin, who is also the state PKR chairman, was asked to comment on whether the cooperation between PAS and Umno would give BN the advantage in Rantau.
In the March 2, Semenyih state by-election, BN recaptured the state seat when its candidate Zakaria Hanafi won the four-cornered contest with a majority of 1,914 votes.
Commenting on reports on social media, which have gone viral, that Rembau PKR branch deputy chief Datuk Hanif Hassan and former Malaysian ambassador to China Datuk Iskandar Saharuddin were among the PH candidates for Rantau, Aminuddin said PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim had acknowledged that many names would be proposed.
“There’s still a long time before we name the candidate… we are always open to proposals. I only ask that our supporters and members be patient and give our leaders at the federal level the opportunity to name the best candidate so that we can win.
“We must respect the (candidate selection) system and I hope members will be disciplined in that regard,” he said.
The Election Commission announced yesterday that the Rantau state by-election would be held on April 13, with nomination set for March 30. Early voting will be on April 9. — Bernama
