PETALING JAYA: Gerakan will contest eight seats in the upcoming Selangor election.
Gerakan president Datuk Dr Dominic Lau said the candidates must be able to self-finance as part of the criteria to be selected to represent the party, in addition to being fluent in Bahasa Melayu.
"The eight locations will include Kuala Kubu Baru in Hulu Selangor, Bukit Gasing in Petaling Jaya, Bandar Utama and Bukit Lanjan in Damansara, Bandar Baru Klang in Klang, Sentosa and Kota Kemuning in Kota Raja, and Banting in Kuala Langat.
"For Gerakan, of course, we use the 'winnable' criteria during the candidate selection process such as having a fighting spirit, being outspoken and being fluent in the language used to better understand the locals.
"To be frank, some of the candidates qualify (to contest), but in terms of self-finance, they could not make it. (In that case), we're sorry (they can't be selected) because of the limitations in resources that we have," he said after launching the Selangor Gerak annual general meeting at Wisma BU8, here.
Lau said the party will not repeat the same mistakes of the state elections in Johor and Melaka, and the 15th General Election.
"Whatever weaknesses we had, it won't happen again in the next state election. Why Gerakan already has a pool of candidates for selection is that we learnt a lesson that we could not get candidates on a last-minute basis.
"Now, we quickly get the pool (together) and ask all six states to submit (candidates' names) and also get other states to submit.
"On a last-minute basis, if a state doesn't have the candidates, we will open to other states. And if there are still no candidates, we might consider outsiders, but with the criteria that he or she must be with Gerakan after the state election."
On Thursday, Perikatan Nasional chairman Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin announced that the coalition would contest all 245 seats in the six states.
Pas will contest 126 seats; Bersatu, 83; and Gerakan, 36.