Mat Hasan: Majority in Umno prefer going sans PAS in polls
PAS may still be harbouring hope for an electoral pact, but Umno deputy president Mohamad Hasan said most Umno divisions in Johor prefer to go solo in the state polls.
Mohamad was asked to respond to the differing opinions in Umno on whether the party should cooperate with PAS in the Johor polls.
"We will scrutinise and study the matter but for now, the majority of the leaders at the division and grassroots level wants BN to go solo in this election.
"However, the top leadership will look at the matter thoroughly before making a decision so that it will be for the benefit of BN," he told a press conference during a visit to Johor today.
Acknowledging that it will be the first election where the voting age has been lowered from 21 to 18 and also automatic voter registration, Mohamad said the challenges are not exclusive to BN.
"BN is not the only one facing young voters. All the parties will be facing the same issue. It will be up to the respective parties to convince them," he said.
Responding to scepticism if BN can capture a two-thirds majority in Johor, he noted that there were similar scepticisms during the Malacca polls.
He stressed that the focus now was to focus on their work to convince voters.
He added that BN already has a substantial base of voters and must secure them on top of trying to convince independent voters.
Johor Menteri Besar Hasni Mohammad sought a dissolution of the state assembly last Saturday, paving the way for fresh polls within 60 days.
The Election Commission is expected to meet on Feb 9 to decide on the nomination and polling days.
Umno triggered the snap poll while riding on its landslide win in the Malacca polls last November.
BN won 21 out of 28 seats in the Malacca polls, restoring its two-thirds majority.
"No cure for Umno’s greed other than defeat"
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