Pact forged to let DAP have Bentong, Gelang Patah

After months of tension, the DAP and PKR have finally reached an agreement for the former to contest in Bentong, Pahang and Gelang Patah, Johor.

DAP supremo Lim Kit Siang announced this at a function in Batu Pahat this afternoon.

“We reached the agreement in a meeting between myself, (PKR de facto leader) Anwar Ibrahim and other top leaders of DAP and PKR last Monday,” Lim toldMalaysiakini when contacted.

However, he did not name the candidates to be fielded in those seats.

“It is very clear that this is not a question of any individual or political party, but whether Pakatan Rakyat can bring changes in the next GE,” said Lim.

The two opposition parties have been jousting for the Gelang Patah seat since February.

With an electorate of over 100,000, it is among the largest parliamentary constituencies.

It comprises two state seats: Skudai and Nusajaya. Skudai is held by Johor DAP chief Dr Boo Cheng Hau while Nusajaya is in the hands of Umno's Abdul Aziz Sapian.

Being one of the very few Chinese-majority parliamentary constituencies in Johor, both the DAP and PKR  state chiefs were eyeing it.

‘Let tsunami come from south’

Meanwhile Lim said Johor is an important battleground as it is one of BN’s three “fixed deposits” in the last general election.

“In the 2008 election, the tsunami came from the north, and this time we hope it will come from the south, that is from Johor, Negri Sembilan and Malacca,” he said.

Lim said Pakatan is targeting to win at least 18 parliamentary seats from the ruling party in these three southern states: 15 in Johor, two in Negri Sembilan and one in Malacca.

“These are seats that are currently being held by BN. If we can win at least 13 to 14 seats, it would be a major contribution to our cause to win the federal power,” he said.

To bolster their southern front, the DAP veteran himself will be leaving his Ipoh Timor seat to contest in Johor.

Lim is expected to announce his battleground soon, with some speculating it to be Gelang Patah.