MCA, MIC will contest state polls, Zahid assures

Barisan Nasional (BN) chairman Ahmad Zahid Hamidi has assured MCA and MIC that they will be given seats to contest in the six state elections to come.

Zahid, who is deputy prime minister, said he hoped his statement would put an end to speculation that some component parties of BN would be sidelined in the state polls.

"I hope this will put an end to any rumours that certain BN components will be sidelined. I want to give this assurance to our friends in BN component parties," the Umno president told reporters after an event in Putrajaya yesterday.

Selangor, Penang, Negeri Sembilan, Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu are expected to hold simultaneous state elections in the coming weeks.

MIC deputy president M Saravanan was yesterday quoted as denying reports that his party would be given seats to contest in Selangor.

On seat allocations between BN and Pakatan Harapan (PH), Zahid said the process was nearly complete.

Zahid said he was waiting for PH chairman Anwar Ibrahim to fix a date for talks to finalise the seat distribution for the two coalitions.

"I think it won’t be too far away. Several rounds of negotiations have been held between BN and PH," he said.