Kota kinabalu: DAP aims to prevent contesting the same seats as its coalition partners in the 17th Sabah state election on Nov 29. Its secretary-general, Anthony Loke, said the party values harmony within the coalition and will make every effort to prevent seat clashes, particularly with major parties in the government.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, Loke mentioned that discussions on seat allocations with Barisan Nasional (BN) have been finalized, ensuring no overlap in seats between the two parties, while talks with other coalition partners are still ongoing. “We respect the harmony in our coalition. There is still one week before nomination day on Nov 15, so we are making this early announcement to allow our candidates to make their preparations,” Loke stated at a press conference after launching the DAP Election Machinery and announcing the party’s candidates for the Sabah state polls.

Loke announced that DAP will contest in seven of the eight seats, with the candidate for one interior constituency to be revealed later, pending further discussions and consensus with coalition partners. “The initial agreement is that we will contest that seat, but there are still requests for further discussions. We have no issue in continuing those talks,” he added.

He further explained that DAP has carefully assessed the constituency in question and noted that the party has previously represented the area and holds a good performance record there. The DAP intends to field a well-regarded local female candidate, with internal assessments indicating she has a strong chance of winning. “We believe she has the highest chance of winning. The decision within the party has been made, but we will respect our coalition partners by delaying the announcement until we reach a mutual understanding,” Loke concluded.