JOHOR BARU: Parti Amanah Negara (Amanah) Youth will continue to put pressure on the leadership of Pakatan Harapan and Barisan Nasional to ensure that a candidate from their party will contest in the upcoming Mahkota by-election.
Amanah Youth exco Fadhli Umar Aminolhuda said their demands stemmed from the long-standing grievances of Johor Amanah and the party's grassroots as they felt sidelined by the Johor government.
"Johor has yet to be a unity government as PH, including Amanah, has been denied roles in the state government, such as in the appointment of council members and village heads.
"Johor Umno Youth chief Noor Azleen Ambros might have overlooked this fact when he accused Amanah of being greedy and impatient. Meanwhile, Umno continues to make public statements that hurt the PH grassroots, including Amanah.
"This includes Umno's open statements about wanting to contest in seats currently held by PH and Amanah, including the seat held by Amanah president Datuk Seri Mohamad Sabu in the Kota Raja Parliament," he said in a statement today.
Kluang Amanah has reportedly urged that the party be given a chance to contest in the Mahkota by-election, which will be announced soon.
Kluang Amanah chief Dr. Mohd Zuhan Mohd Zain reportedly said this is because Amanah had previously won the Mahkota state assembly seat in the 14th General Election and also contested the seat in the state election in 2022.
However, he said if Johor Umno, as the mainstay of the state government, is willing to provide positions in the state government, including council members, village heads, and community leaders, Amanah is willing to give way to Umno to contest the Mahkota seat.
Following this, Johor Umno Youth reportedly described Amanah's demand for the Mahkota seat as greedy and impatient.
Noor Azleen reportedly said that Amanah is also seen as not respecting the sensitivities of the family of the late Datuk Sharifah Azizah Syed Zain, the former Mahkota state assembly member who recently passed away.
Elaborating further, Fadhli Umar said Amanah Youth wants to see the unity government remain strong and united under the leadership of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
"However, Johor Umno should self-reflect and sincerely build Johor as a unity government first.
"If not, Amanah Youth will not hesitate to continue pushing for Amanah to contest in Mahkota, even if it means facing a three-cornered fight," he said.