PAHANG Barisan Nasional (BN) will not take the Pelangai state by-election lightly, its chairman Wan Rosdy Wan Ismail said.

“We will continue to work hard… we can’t take it for granted,” he said when met after launching a book titled “Budi Pujangga” and the Pahang Museum Education Club at SMK (P) Methodist in Kuantan today.

Wan Rosdy said at the recent retreat programme in Janda Baik, Bentong, the state party leadership agreed to submit the names of six potential candidates to the top leadership for consideration. The final choice would be announced two or three days before nomination day.

The Pelangai constituency had been the seat of former menteri besar Adnan Yaakob since 1986. After he retired from politics last year, the seat was contested by Johari Harun in last year’s general election.

Johari, 53, was among 10 people who died in a plane crash in Bandar Elmina, Shah Alam in Selangor on August 17.

The Election Commission has set the by-election for October 7, with September 23 as nomination day. Early voting will be on October 3.

In the general election, Johari won the seat with a majority of 4,048 votes, defeating Perikatan Nasional’s (PN) Kasim Samat, who received 3,260 votes and Pakatan Harapan’s (PH) Ahmed Wafiuddin Shamsuri with 2,031 votes. Pejuang candidate Isa Ahmad lost his deposit after getting only 64 votes.

On BN’s cooperation with PH in the by-election, Wan Rosdy is optimistic that they will get good support from PH considering the spirit of the unity government.

“Cooperation with Pahang PH has existed since election for the Tioman state seat,” he said.

In the general election, voting for the Tioman seat could not held on polling day, November 19, 2022, due to the death of PN candidate Md Yunus Ramli the same morning, causing it to be rescheduled for December 7, 2022.

PH then decided to give way to the BN candidate, taking into account the agreement between the two coalitions to establish a government at the federal and state levels. – Bernama, September 11, 2023.