In an attempt to win federal power, DAP parliamentary leader Lim Kit Siang, who has been visiting Johor frequently of late, is expected to contest a parliamentary seat in the state in the coming general election.

It is learnt that the Ipoh Timor MP will be making an official announcement on his move to the southern BN stronghold at DAP's 47th anniversary celebration and ceramah in Skudai, near Johor Bharu, on Monday.

Several party insiders told Malaysiakini that the possibility of Lim contesting a Johor parliamentary seat in GE13 was "very real".

However, it could not be confirmed that whether Lim would also name the seat he intended to contest, tough speculation has been that it could be Gelang Patah.

NONE Lim, when contacted on this matter, refused to comment.

On Tuesday, DAP national organising secretary Anthony Loke ( left ) said a “major announcement” would be made at the party’s anniversary celebration in Skudai.

Asked for some details by Malaysiakini later, Loke refused to divulge further details, apart from saying it would be a “major announcement that relates to the party’s movements in the coming general election”.

DAP deputy president Tan Kok Wai, who also sits on the four-member panel to finalise the party’s candidates for GE13, also declined to comment.

It is learnt three parliamentary seats are being considered for the veteran DAP leader - Gelang Patah , Kulai and Kluang , with Gelang Patah being the seat most touted.

This constituency, close to Johor Bahru, comprises 54 percent Chinese voters, 34 percent Malay and 12 percent Indian. Incumbent MP and Johor Wanita MCA chief Tan Ah Eng retained the seat with a 8,851-vote majority in 2008.

A 'winnable' seat for Pakatan

Gelang Patah is deemed to be one of the winnable seats for Pakatan Rakyat because of a strong sentiment against the BN among the Chinese community there.

NONE PKR contested in Gelang Patah in the last two general elections, but DAP recently expressed its wish to battle for the seat - over which Johor DAP chief Dr Boo Cheng Hau ( right ) and state PKR chief Chua Jui Meng crossed swords in the mass media.

It is understood that the national leadership of the two parties have taken over seat negotiations in Johor since then and DAP is confident it will win PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim’s approval for Gelang Patah.

The only concern for DAP is that the PKR grassroots may not be agreeable to the move, since the party had earlier this week let go of its Bentong parliamentary seat to DAP.

This also explains why DAP leaders are tight-lipped about Gelang Patah for they do not want to provoke anger from PKR grassroots members who could oppose the move to hand over the seat to DAP.

Endorsement by Anwar will help

DAP has confirmed that Anwar will attend its anniversary celebration on Monday. Skudai is one of the two state seats under Gelang Patah, with Nusajaya being the other state seat.

NONE It is believed that Lim’s announcement of  his candidature in Gelang Patah, in the company of Anwar, will reduce the risk of angering PKR members.

For DAP, the move could mean killing two birds with one stone – Lim can boost the morale of the Johor DAP machinery as well as quell the party’s disputes with PKR in order to focus on the Pakatan agenda of winning federal power.

PKR deputy president Azmin Ali could not be reached for comment on this matter.

Lim is well-known for his record of moving from one state to another to spearhead the party's fight in winning over political territory from the enemy.

One of the most memorable fights was the “Battle of Tanjung”, in which Lim moved to contest in Penang in the 1986 general election and helped DAP win 10 state seats.

NONE In the last general election, Lim contested in Ipoh Timur, resulting in DAP winning enough seats to form the state government along with its Pakatan allies before they were ousted following a number of defections.

Last week, Boo suggested that Lim contests in Johor, to which Lim said he needed to “consider other opinions” before deciding.

It is learnt that Boo's supporters prefer that Lim contests in Gelang Patah or in Kulai. If it is Gelang Patah, then Boo may be given the chance to contest Kulai, as well as defend his Skudai state seat.

If Lim picks Kulai, Boo's supporters hope that the doctor-cum-politician could contest Gelang Patah and another state seat that was won by the BN in last election.

It is believed that though Lim could even decide to contest in Kluang, chances are not that high as the incumbent MP, Hou Kok Chung of the MCA, is still much favoured by the locals.

The DAP has declared Johor a frontline state for GE13 and hopes to win more parliamentary constituencies in the southern state in order to contribute enough seats for Pakatan to take over the federal government.

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