Report: Umno’s Noh Omar keen to ally with PAS to capture Selangor in GE15

KUALA LUMPUR, April 30 — Selangor Umno will seek to maintain its ties with Selangor PAS through the Muafakat Nasional (MN) pact to win the state in the 15th general election (GE15).

Its chief Tan Sri Noh Omar said the two parties, which are currently part of the Opposition in Selangor, must unite to wrest the state from Pakatan Harapan (PH).

He pointed out that the political situation in each state is different, especially in Selangor, where Umno is in dire need of political cooperation with PAS.

“If there is a three-cornered contest, it will be very risky as this will give PH the advantage.

“Instead, we (Umno) hope to continue our cooperation with MN, but not with the Perikatan Nasional (PN) pact,” Noh told Sinar Harian when met at the Tanjong Karang Ramadan Bazaar site yesterday.

The Tanjong Karang MP pointed out that based on a study of voters in Selangor, the number of Malay voters almost equaled that of their non-Malay counterparts in the state.

“There are several state assembly seats and Parliament seats in Selangor that have a Malay majority.

“However, if these seats split, it will only give PH candidates the advantage,” Noh was quoted as saying in the report published today.

Noh, who is also the entrepreneur development and cooperatives minister, said that cooperation between Umno and PAS through MN is still good.

He said both parties often hold joint programmes together in Selangor.

“I recently had a discussion with Selangor PAS commissioner Datuk Dr Ahmad Yunus Hairi, touching on the fact that Selangor is different from other states.

“If we want to take over Selangor, then Umno and PAS must work together to bring down PH first,” said Noh.

However, he said both parties will still abide by any decisions made by their respective central leaderships.

“So far, I have not received any instructions from Umno’s top leadership,” said Noh.

Of late, several political leaders have been mooting political cooperation as speculation mounts that national polls will be held soon.

This includes PH and its component parties that are considering the “big tent” approach as a form of political cooperation against Barisan Nasional (BN) and its lynchpin party, Umno.