DAP parliamentary leader Lim Kit Siang today announced that he will not be contesting any state seat, but will focus on the Gelang Patah parliamentary seat in the general election.

Denying rumours , Lim said it was never his intention to contest a state seat.

“Some criticise me for being greedy, but I have no intention to fight for a state seat,” Lim told Malaysiakini .

The DAP supremo also made a formal announcement on the matter at a function in Johor Jaya this morning.

NONE It was earlier speculated that Lim was eyeing the Johor Jaya constituency after receiving encouraging response from Johoreans.

Lim said DAP is instead proposing its Socialist Youth committee member Liow Cai Tung ( left ) to contest the seat, if it obtains the consent of its Pakatan allies.

“The seat negotiations for Johor Jaya constituency are still being discussed, but our candidate is Liow,” Lim said.

He said he believes the 27-year-old will be able to win over the support of young and first-time voters.

Liow, who is Johor DAP Youth deputy publicity chief, and daughter of Johor DAP Wanita deputy chief Ng Siam Luang, has issued a statement last week inviting Lim to contest in Johor Jaya.

She is a full-time political worker and has been working the ground at the constituency since about a year ago.

'Seat swap does not arise'

Asked about the Johor seat negotiations, Lim clarified that PKR made way for DAP to contest in Gelang Patah parliamentary seat.

Hence, he said the question of exchanging seats does not arise.

“This is to boost our chances in winning federal power. But of course, the talk of Segamat for (Johor PKR chief Chua) Jui Meng is still being discussed,” he said.

He added that DAP is only targeting to contest seven parliamentary seats and15 state seats in Johor, or less than one-third of the seats.

In the meantime, he advised all Pakatan leaders to stop making media statements about the seat negotiations and let the national leadership decide.

azlan