Peja: Not true PN didn't make offers to BN in Perak

Perak Perikatan Nasional (PN) chairperson Ahmad Faizal Azumu said it is not true that his coalition did not meet with or offered any role to BN in forming the state government.

He said he met with Perak Menteri Besar Saarani Mohamad on Nov 20, 2022 in Kuala Lumpur, along with Perak Umno Youth chief Zainol Fadzi Paharudin to discuss the possibility of forming a pact between the two coalitions in Perak.

“In the same meeting, he (Saarani) expressed his wish to remain as the proposed menteri besar and that it was something very important.

“I stressed that PN was open to cooperation, but his side insisted that PN offered important positions in the state government.

“He requested to refer to the Umno leadership before making any agreements,” Faizal said in a statement today.

Faizal said he had told Saarani about his concern that the Perak government had yet to table any state budget for 2023 and as such, the political turmoil must be resolved as soon as possible for the sake of the rakyat.

However, he said Saarani had today “saved” his menteri besar position by lying to the previous Umno general assembly about not working with DAP.

Earlier today, Pakatan Harapan and BN joined forces to form a state government in Perak, with Saarani retaining his position as menteri besar. He was sworn in earlier this evening.

Saarani later denied that the pact between Harapan and BN was due to him wanting to stay on as the menteri besar.

On the contrary, he said, Perak BN was ready to play its role as an opposition, but it was Harapan who offered the menteri besar position to BN instead.

“BN was ready to be the opposition because we realised we had lost. But when there is any party offering us to form the government and giving us a role to join in the administration, of course, I have to accept.

“If I did not accept, surely the (BN) members would say I am stupid, isn’t it? But that role is suitable for me because I (previously) was the one who handled the Perak Sejahtera 2030 agenda. So I want to continue with it and that’s why I accepted,” he said, as reported by Berita Harian. 

On the other hand, Saarani claimed PN did not meet with him to negotiate or to offer any role to them to play in the state government.

“That’s why I chose Harapan,” he said.

He acknowledged that he did meet with Zainol on Nov 20, but he said the Perak Umno Youth leader was only given the mandate to arrange a meeting between him and Faizal.

“Zainol cannot do anything (about making offers). But at 10am yesterday before attending the Umno political bureau meeting, I met with Faizal and Zainol and told them I have been given an offer by Harapan and I advised them to make their offers too.

“However, I did not receive any offers from them, when the state assembly and the government needed to be formed immediately to enable the state budget to be passed,” Saarani explained.

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