KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 21 — Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan is confident that Malaysia will have a strong and stable unity government with the Umno-led Barisan Nasional (BN) at the helm again after the November 19 general election.
The Umno secretary-general said the BN coalition should be able to win a simple majority of 112 federal seats and is counting on Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS), the ruling coalition in the south Borneo state, to deliver 25 more even though no formal agreement has been struck, Utusan Malaysia reported today.
“Several of our leaders recently met with the GPS leadership and the latter agreed to the arrangement, as long as BN’s side was dominant.
“That is the reason BN needs to secure 112 parliament seats before bringing GPS on board to form the next federal government,” Ahmad was quoted as saying.
Ahmad, who is the incumbent Pontian MP, said GPS was appreciative that BN would not be competing in Sarawak under its highly recognisable logo of the dacing, two equal weighing scales.
Ahmad said the BN is not out to disrupt order and harmony in Sarawak and that’s why it is choosing not to contest any of the 31 federal seats there for fear of causing a split vote.
Most of the component parties in GPS were formerly members of BN before the last general election in 2018.
“That is the reason BN will only contest in 191 federal seats in the peninsula.
“Overall, BN is targeting to win 112 seats and GPS is looking at 25 seats. With the combined figures, there is a possibility of forming a strong government,” Ahmad was quoted saying in an interview.
Ahmad described the arrangement with GPS as an advantage for BN compared to the electoral tie-ups by rival coalitions like Pakatan Harapan, Perikatan Nasional, and Gerakan Tanah Air.
