The opposition risks losing seats if a snap election is called in Penang, said PKR vice-president Nurul Izzah Anwar.

"We all face that risk. With the possibility of three-cornered fights, theoretically speaking, no one wins but Umno," Nurul Izzah said when met by reporters in Kuala Lumpur today.

She said this when asked if PKR was holding back on agreeing to the snap election because the party was afraid of losing seats.

PKR on Tuesday said it was still not convinced on the need for a snap election in Penang, while Amanah has already agreed to the plan proposed by DAP.

While Nurul Izzah did not say which opposition parties would be locked in three-cornered fights with the BN, these would clearly be Pakatan Harapan and PAS, which have been at loggerheads since last year.

The recent by-elections in Sungai Besar and Kuala Kangsar saw PAS and Amanah taking on each other and BN in three-way battles which ultimately resulted in big wins for the ruling coalition.

A repeat of this results, Nurul said, would only give more mileage to the perpetrators of the 1MDB scandal.

"Winning and losing in an election is one small bit but we should focus on defeating those who have almost robbed this country dry."

Meanwhile on the public tension between PKR and DAP over the snap polls, Nurul Izzah hoped it could be resolved internally.

"We should reduce public discourse to the bare minimum," she said.

Yesterday, Petaling Jaya Utara MP Tony Pua of DAP had taken veiled jabs at PKR, lamenting on Facebook how some "friends" had left them completely naked in their hour of need.

This provoked a heated response from PKR's Latheefa Koya.

Asked if she would mediate, Nurul Izzah said that Pua was a close friend who has stuck with her through thick and thin, and whom she cared for.

"I highly respect and care very much for him. I would work towards solving (any disagreements).

"I would always vote in favour of friendship - that's the most important vote we should safeguard."