Do away with even number of state seats, Karpal tells EC

The Election Commission (EC) should do away with an even number of state seats in eight states to avoid a hung state assembly, said DAP national chairman Karpal Singh. He said the delineation exercise, which would be carried out by the EC this year, should take into account the weaknesses of having state assemblies with an even number of seats. "The EC should increase at least one state seat in states with an even number of seats," Karpal told a news conference here today. He was commenting on the impending Kuala Besut state by-election in Terengganu following the death of two-term assemblyman Dr Abdul Rahman Mokthar, 55, on Tuesday. With his death, the state Barisan Nasional hangs precariously to power with 16 seats against Pakatan Rakyat's 15 (PAS 14 while PKR one). "The by-election is very significant because if PAS were to win Kuala Besut, there will be a tie (16-16)," he said, adding that other state assemblies with an even number of state seats were Penang (40), Kedah (36), Pahang (42), Selangor (56), Negeri Sembilan (36), Melaka (28), Johor (56) and Sabah (60). Karpal said a hung state assembly could lead to a fresh election at the expense of taxpayers' money. Meanwhile, Karpal urged former Indonesian vice-president Jusuf Kalla to make a public apology for allegedly claiming opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim had received foreign aid to organise Blackout 505 rallies. "Jusuf's claim hurts Pakatan Rakyat," said Karpal.