KUALA LUMPUR: PAS is ready to face the Galas by-election, but it told its troops: don't be over-confident of retaining the Kelantan state assembly seat.
Its vice-president Salahuddin Ayub said party members and election workers should not be over-confident in ensuring the seat stayed in the hands of PAS since the Barisan Nasional would inevitably mount a strong challenge.
The Galas state seat, which has about 10,000 voters, fell vacant following the death of incumbent Che Hashim Sulaima of cancer on Sept 27. He won the seat, under the Gua Musang parliamentary constituency, with a slim 646-vote majority at the 2008 general election.
The Gua Musang parliamentary consituency, won by the BN in the general election two years ago, has two other state seats, namely Nenggeri and Paloh, and both are in the hands of the BN.
"PAS takes this (winning the by-election) as a big challenge. Our machinery needs to be ever prepared and not be over-confident. PAS needs to strengthen its commitment in retaining the seat. The challenge for PAS would be to overcome this challlenge smartly, " Salahuddin told a press conference at the party headquarters here today.
Is Muhyiddin running away?
Asked if the appoinment of Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah as the BN director for the by-election would pose a problem, he said:"I do not have a problem with Ku Li."
The BN, departing from its norm, has appointed Razaleigh, who is also Gua Musang MP, as its by-election director. The BN by-election director is usually the deputy prime minister.
Salahuddin said he would not question Razaleigh's involvement in the polls, but it was puzzling as to why Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin avoided the task of leading the BN campaign, where dates for nomination and polling are yet to be fixed.
"All the time the deputy prime minister leads the BN in by-elections. But why is he (Muhyiddin) running away this time? Why is Umno departing from its norm for the Galas by-election?" asked Salahuddin, who is also Kubang Kerian MP.
The Election Commission meanwhile today said that it would meet on Oct 6 to determine the nomination and polling dates.
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