Karpal: Only one or two DAP candidates get to contest two seats

The DAP will allow only one or two individuals to contest both parliamentary and state seats in the 13th General Election for strategic reasons, said its chairman Karpal Singh.

The party also has yet to finish the job of picking candidates and it will likely last up to the eve of nomination on April 20, he said.

The DAP's candidates are selected by a four-man committee comprising Karpal Singh, advisor Lim Kit Siang, secretary-general Lim Guan Eng and party disciplinary chief Tan Kok Wai.

Karpal Singh told Bernama the committee met two days ago and among the matters discussed was the one-candidate-one-seat arrangement.

"Among the major issues discussed was who should be given the exception. There is still room until next week fur further deliberation on the candidates list", Karpal Singh said, but did not elaborate.

A party insider said the selection committee had also looked into the issue of Indian candidates after some DAP parliamentary incumbents said their numbers were expected to drop compared to the 2008 general election.

Currently, nine DAP leaders hold parliamentary and state seats, among them Guan Eng who is the Penang chief minister, party national organising secretary Teresa Kok and Penang deputy chief minister Prof P. Ramasamy.

Like its opposition partners, PKR and PAS, the DAP has released the names of its candidates in batches.

While Kit Siang has announced his candidacy for the Gelang Patah parliamentary seat in Johor, 72-year-old Karpal Singh said he would be staying put in Penang to defend his Bukit Gelugor parliamentary seat because "for now, I'm not retiring".