It’s not easy for PAS to take over Kedah, says Deputy Speaker

GEORGE TOWN, May 11 — PAS and Umno may be aiming to take over the Kedah state administration but it may not be as easy as it seems, said Kedah Deputy Speaker Juhari Bulat. 

The Ayer Hangat assemblyman said it looked easy for PAS and Umno to get two assemblymen to switch over to their side to form the state government. 

“In reality, it will be difficult to get even one assemblyman to switch over,” he said when contacted by Malay Mail today.

The Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (PPBM) assemblyman said PAS has been aiming to take over the state administration for a while now.

He added that there were issues that PAS needed to agree with if they wanted PPBM assemblymen to switch sides such as which party will hold the Mentri Besar post. 

However, Juhari did not reject the possibility of PAS and Umno taking over the Kedah administration if they managed to convince at least two PPBM assemblymen to switch over.

“Maybe they managed to persuade some people? We never know, so let’s just wait and see,” he said.

Yesterday, Kedah PAS and Umno reportedly held a three-hour closed-door meeting with central PAS leaders at the Kedah PAS Complex.

It was reported that 15 PAS assemblymen and two from Umno attended the meeting. 

Juhari confirmed that he had also attended the last 40 minutes of the meeting but did not reveal what was discussed in the meeting. 

He hinted that he knew who would be ready to switch sides to form the state government with PAS and Umno but did not want to reveal the names. 

“We will have to wait and see, let’s have some suspense, all shall be revealed in due time,” he said.

He said Kedah Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Mukhriz Mahathir has not called a meeting to discuss the possibility of PAS and Umno taking over the state.   

When asked if he supported PAS and Umno taking over the state administration, he said he would have to accept it if it happened. 

“Whichever side, it is the same, what is important now is that we can continue to serve our constituents,” he said. 

When contacted, state PAS commissioner Ahmad Yahaya said the meeting was just one of the regular Muafakat Nasional meetings between PAS and Umno leaders.

“So far, we do not have any official statement to release to the media on this, it was just a regular Muafakat Nasional meeting to strengthen the relationship between PAS and Umno,” he said.

When asked if they had discussed a change in the Kedah state government, he declined to comment while stating that it will be revealed in time.

There are 36 state seats in Kedah with PKR holding seven seats, PPBM six, Amanah four and DAP two for a total of 19 seats under the Pakatan Harapan (PH) administration.

PAS holds 15 seats while Umno holds two seats, bringing to a total 17 seats. They would need another two seats to take over the state administration.