KOTA KINABALU, Sept 26 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today said Pakatan Harapan (PH) could still play a decisive role in the upcoming Sabah state election despite contesting fewer seats compared to its partners.
The PKR president and PH chairman said the number of seats does not reflect their importance.
“Some people say Pakatan Harapan doesn’t have many seats, but what I want to say is that even with just a handful, we will be the deciding factor,” he said during the launch of Parti Keadilan Rakyat’s election machinery at Kampung Kobuni here.
PH currently holds seven seats in the State Assembly, of which PKR holds two.
Anwar also confirmed sticking to the coalition’s separate pacts with Barisan Nasional (BN) and the Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS).
“We are working with Pakatan Harapan and we are working with GRS. That is our stand,” he said when asked by reporters about the seat negotiations.
He said discussions were still ongoing with GRS, which is led by Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor.
While PH has yet to settle seat allocations with GRS, it is understood that the PH-BN pact has completed negotiations.
PH has asked for “exclusive rights” to seats with their partners, where neither should contest if PH is contesting.
Anwar also said that the decision on when to dissolve the state assembly rests with Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor.
He is expected to dissolve the sitting before the current five-year term automatically ends on Nov 11.
