Latest news with #RazeefRakimin
Daily Express
7 days ago
- Politics
- Daily Express
Finalise seat targets only after allies known, Nurul Izzah told
Published on: Tuesday, May 27, 2025 Published on: Tue, May 27, 2025 By: Anne Muhammad, FMT Text Size: Nurul Izzah Anwar says PKR should contest in at least 13 seats at the upcoming Sabah election but the state chapter's information chief Razeef Rakimin says the party is not yet able to finalise the number. PETALING JAYA: Sabah PKR will only be in a position to determine the number of seats it can contest in the upcoming state election once Pakatan Harapan (PH) and Barisan Nasional (BN) finalise their alliances, says a party leader. Sabah PKR information chief Razeef Rakimin told FMT negotiations within PH were already in their final phase and could be completed before next month. Talks between BN-PH and ruling state coalition Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) are still ongoing. Razeef said newly elected PKR deputy president Nurul Izzah Anwar's target of contesting in 13 seats may be 'too high', particularly if GRS joins the alliance. He called on PKR to wait until all electoral pacts are sealed before deciding how many seats the state chapter should contest. 'We've wrapped up discussions on PH's election machinery, and now the focus is on seat allocation. Our team will give its full commitment—not only to PH candidates but also, if applicable, to BN and GRS,' he said. A total of 73 seats will be contested in the upcoming Sabah polls, which must be held before the year ends. In the last state election in 2020, PKR secured only two seats. Advertisement PH and BN recently announced an alliance for the polls, while efforts are ongoing to also team up with GRS. Nurul Izzah has urged party president Anwar Ibrahim to negotiate with PH components and their allies to secure at least 13 seats for PKR in the election. * Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel and Telegram for breaking news alerts and key updates! * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express's Telegram channel. Daily Express Malaysia
Free Malaysia Today
27-05-2025
- Politics
- Free Malaysia Today
Finalise seat targets only after allies known, Nurul Izzah told
Nurul Izzah Anwar says PKR should contest in at least 13 seats at the upcoming Sabah election but the state chapter's information chief Razeef Rakimin says the party is not yet able to finalise the number. PETALING JAYA : Sabah PKR will only be in a position to determine the number of seats it can contest in the upcoming state election once Pakatan Harapan (PH) and Barisan Nasional (BN) finalise their alliances, says a party leader. Sabah PKR information chief Razeef Rakimin told FMT negotiations within PH were already in their final phase and could be completed before next month. Talks between BN-PH and ruling state coalition Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) are still ongoing. Razeef said newly elected PKR deputy president Nurul Izzah Anwar's target of contesting in 13 seats may be 'too high', particularly if GRS joins the alliance. He called on PKR to wait until all electoral pacts are sealed before deciding how many seats the state chapter should contest. 'We've wrapped up discussions on PH's election machinery, and now the focus is on seat allocation. Our team will give its full commitment—not only to PH candidates but also, if applicable, to BN and GRS,' he said. A total of 73 seats will be contested in the upcoming Sabah polls, which must be held before the year ends. In the last state election in 2020, PKR secured only two seats. PH and BN recently announced an alliance for the polls, while efforts are ongoing to also team up with GRS. Nurul Izzah has urged party president Anwar Ibrahim to negotiate with PH components and their allies to secure at least 13 seats for PKR in the election.
Free Malaysia Today
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Free Malaysia Today
Sabah PH ‘effectively stripped of autonomy', says GRS man
Upko president Ewon Benedick previously said Sabah PH should retain its autonomy, while Sabah PKR information chief Razeef Rakimin said the local chapter was comfortable working with both BN and GRS. PETALING JAYA : Political tensions are simmering in Sabah after the top leadership of Pakatan Harapan and Barisan Nasional announced today that all key decisions related to the state election will be 'finalised' by the national leadership. A senior Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) leader said the move 'appears to have effectively stripped Sabah PH of its autonomy'. He said this has irked many local leaders, who insist that the direction of the state chapters and ultimately, Sabah's political destiny – should be decided by Sabahans, not figures in Kuala Lumpur. The GRS man, who expressed disappointment with the joint PH-BN announcement, said leaving the final decision-making process to the federal leadership of both coalitions 'disregards Sabah's unique political landscape'. 'That third paragraph in the statement alone tells you everything that is wrong with how KL sees Sabah. 'It's one of the reasons why Sabahans feel sidelined as decisions about our state are dictated by people who don't live here,' he told FMT. The GRS leader, who spoke on condition of anonymity, was referring to a statement by the unity government secretariat this morning, which said that discussions on the form of cooperation between BN and PH would be handled jointly by the leaderships of their state chapters. However, the statement also said that 'all decisions will be finalised by the top leaderships of PH and BN at the national level'. In 2023, Upko president Ewon Benedick called for Sabah PH to be allowed to retain its autonomy to ensure it was in a position to make its decisions in the interest of Sabahans. In November last year, DAP secretary-general Loke Siew Fook granted the party's Sabah chapter full autonomy to negotiate collaboration with GRS for the state election, citing its better understanding of the state's political dynamics and environment. Sabah PKR also issued a statement two months ago insisting that it had autonomy to decide on its alliances for the state polls. Concerns over BN-GRS relationship Within Sabah PH, the sentiment appears to be leaning towards maintaining its alliance with GRS. Sabah PKR information chief Razeef Rakimin said the local chapter was comfortable working with both BN and GRS, adding that this had been relayed to the federal PH leadership before the pact with BN was announced. 'We told the federal leaders that we have no issue working with BN,' Razeef said. However, he said there were concerns over the relationship between BN and GRS, which have been at war ever since Sabah Umno withdrew support for chief minister Hajiji Noor in January 2023. 'We are hoping these two parties will be able to clear up their disagreement,' he said. GRS information chief Joniston Bangkuai said Hajiji has been unequivocal in wanting to maintain the current alliance with PH, along with a group of Sabah Umno leaders who defied party orders to withdraw their support. 'Why upset an arrangement that is working well, especially when our state reserves are growing year by year?' said Joniston. Sabah's reserves rose from RM5.4 billion in 2022 to over RM7 billion the following year.
Daily Express
01-05-2025
- Politics
- Daily Express
Sabah PKR: No seat deal yet with Umno, no official talk
Published on: Thursday, May 01, 2025 Published on: Thu, May 01, 2025 Text Size: Sabah PKR has dismissed claims of a finalised seat arrangement with UMNO for the upcoming 17th Sabah state election (PRN-17), saying no official discussions have taken place. 'We are open to cooperation, but let's start with real negotiations,' said Razeef Rakimin, PKR Sabah Information Chief. He was responding to UMNO Sabah's Suhaimi Nasir, who claimed a 40-33 seat split had been agreed between Barisan Nasional (BN) and Pakatan Harapan (PH). 'No such talks have occurred. We don't know where Suhaimi got the figure from, and none of our PH leaders have met BN or GRS to discuss seat sharing,' he stressed. He urged UMNO to avoid making unilateral statements, calling repeated claims by BN leaders misleading and unhelpful. * Read full report in tomorrow's print paper or log in or sign up for e-paper and premium online news access. * Follow us on Instagram and join our Telegram and/or WhatsApp channel(s) for the latest news you don't want to miss. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express's Telegram channel. Daily Express Malaysia
