A boycott against the Pakatan Harapan (PH) candidate in Permas is no longer an issue following the coalition’s decision to field a “parachute” candidate for the state seat, according to Parti Amanah Negara (Amanah).
Amanah deputy president Datuk Seri Dr Mujahid Yusof Rawa said the party’s focus has now shifted fully towards securing victory for PH candidate Sharon Teo.
“There is no issue of a boycott, and the focus now is on winning the PH candidate from Amanah, Sharon Teo,” he said when contacted.
He added that the response to the PH campaign on the ground has been encouraging and urged all party machinery to concentrate on engaging voters ahead of polling day.
“We are hoping for a high voter turnout on July 11,” he said, in response to earlier reports suggesting dissatisfaction within Amanah’s Pasir Gudang division over Teo’s candidacy.
Previously, it was reported that some division leaders had considered a boycott, claiming that their concerns over the candidate selection were not addressed by both state and central leadership.
Teo’s candidacy has drawn attention as she is a non-Muslim candidate fielded by Amanah in a Malay-majority seat.
Amanah president Datuk Seri Mohamad Sabu had earlier said that while the party is open to non-Muslim and non-Malay candidates, this is only the second time a Chinese candidate has been fielded, describing the move as bold.
The Permas seat will see a four-cornered contest in the Johor election, with Teo facing Barisan Nasional’s Baharudin Mohamed Taib, Dr Zamil Najwah of Parti Bersama Malaysia, and T. Vela of Perikatan Nasional.
In the previous state election in March 2022, Baharudin won the seat with a 7,926-vote majority in a five-cornered fight.
