BN-PN pact could extend to GE16 if successful, says Loke

DAP secretary-general Loke Siew Fook said the BN-PN pact would not guarantee both coalitions retaining the support they garnered in past elections.PETALING JAYA: Barisan Nasional and Perikatan Nasional could contest the next general election (GE16) under an alliance if their pact for the Negeri Sembilan polls proves successful, says DAP secretary-general Loke Siew Fook.Loke believes both coalitions are using the Aug 1 state election as an experiment to gauge whether the alliance would work in defeating Pakatan Harapan, China Press reported.He said that if BN and PN win, they would be encouraged to pursue similar arrangements in future elections, including several upcoming state polls and GE16.“They believe that by working together, they can secure the support of most, or even an overwhelming majority, of Malay voters.“PH must therefore prove that it is still capable of winning elections and that its opponents may not necessarily command the support of most Malay voters," he said.Loke said the BN-PN pact would not guarantee that both coalitions would retain the support they garnered in past elections.“Politics cannot be calculated using simple arithmetic. They think one plus one must equal two, but in politics, one plus one does not always equal two.“Whether the BN-PN cooperation can ultimately be translated into votes remains to be tested by the electorate. In particular, it is still unclear whether Malay voters in Negeri Sembilan will accept this political logic,” he said.Under their electoral understanding, BN is contesting 25 seats while PN is vying for the remaining 11 in the Negeri Sembilan election.PH is going solo and contesting all 36 seats.BN and PH remain allies at the federal level while PN sits in the opposition.