KUALA LUMPUR: All component parties of the unity government, including Barisan Nasional (BN), will work together to mobilise election machinery ahead of the Nenggiri by-election fixed for Aug 17.
Unity government secretariat chief Datuk Dr Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki said the cooperation is aimed at ensuring smooth operation of by-election machinery.
"Yes, MCA and MIC will definitely be involved when we say that all component parties of BN-Pakatan Harapan (BN-PH) will be included.
"Everyone within the (unity Government) will be involved. There is no arising issues such as boycotts because the spirit of BN-PH is not just for the by-election, (and) everyone will feel a responsibility to work together, he said when asked about the involvement of BN component parties in the by-election.
He said this at a press conference of the BN-PH Coordination Meeting for the Nenggiri state assembly by-election in Kelantan at Menara Dato' Onn, World Trade Centre Kuala Lumpur (WTCKL) here today.
Also present were the BN State Assembly Election Operations director, Datuk Ahmad Jazlan Yaakub, and the PH Kelantan Election Operations director, Adly Zahari.
On July 18, BN announced that it would field Kelantan Umno Youth chief Mohd Azmawi Fikri Abdul Ghani for the Nenggiri state seat by-election.
Meanwhile, in terms of strategy for the by-election, Asyraf Wajdi, who is also Umno secretary-general, said the election machinery this time around will not focus on mega rallies like in previous by-elections.
"We do not want to focus on public speeches this time. Instead, our focus will be on targeted group outreach to voters.
"Therefore, we will identify our members and supporters, (and) we also have supporters from both BN and PH so that all machinery can focus on every voter in Nenggiri without missing anyone," he said.
Regarding the position of the Orang Asli voters, he said BN is confident that the group remained a fixed deposit and will support BN.
"For a long time, the Orang Asli have been loyal and supportive of the unity government.
"(And) even though we lost in the 15th General Election (GE15), we aim to win back Gua Musang.
"In the current context, we will intensify our efforts and add value to our campaign work to secure this state seat."
The by-election was called after the Kelantan speaker Datuk Mohd Amar Nik Abdullah declared the state seat previously held by Mohd Azizi Abu Naim vacant.
Mohd Azizi, who is also the Gua Musang MP, is among the seven elected representatives sacked from Bersatu for declaring their support for the unity government.