JOHOR BAHRU (May 17): DAP secretary general Anthony Loke has suggested that Negeri Sembilan follow Johor in dissolving its state assembly amid expectations that the move could take place in the near future.

He also said Pakatan Harapan (PH), of which DAP is a component party, should contest all state seats in Negeri Sembilan.

“If [Barisan Nasional (BN)] Johor wants to contest all 56 seats, then we will contest 36 in Negeri Sembilan. If Johor dissolves [its assembly] tomorrow, Negeri Sembilan will also dissolve tomorrow,” he said when addressing the Pakatan Harapan convention on Sunday.

Prime Minister and PH chairman Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim was also present at the event.

DAP is the largest party within PH, which currently leads the federal unity government together with BN, Gabungan Rakyat Sabah and Gabungan Parti Sarawak.

Negeri Sembilan has been embroiled in political turmoil after all 14 Umno assemblymen, the lynchpin of BN, withdrew their support for Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Aminuddin Harun over his handling of a crisis involving the state monarchy.

Although Aminuddin retained his position as menteri besar after receiving the consent of the Yang di-Pertuan Besar of Negeri Sembilan Tuanku Muhriz Tuanku Munawir, speculation remains that the state assembly could be dissolved before October, when the deadline to convene the state assembly to table the state budget approaches.

Meanwhile, Loke defended the government’s position on the Unified Examination Certificate (UEC), saying those within the administration who disagree with government policy should consider leaving.

The UEC is a standardised examination taken by students in Chinese independent high schools in Malaysia. It remains a politically sensitive issue, with critics arguing that its recognition could undermine the national education system and use of the Malay language.

The government has recently agreed that UEC graduates without a full SPM certificate — but who passed Bahasa Melayu and History — may apply for limited programmes in Chinese linguistics or Chinese studies.

Loke stressed that the UEC was never intended to replace SPM, dismissing claims to the contrary as “ignorant”.

He noted that opposition parties had previously pledged to recognise the UEC during election campaigns, adding that the current government had shown political courage in addressing the issue.

“This is not a political issue, not a language issue. We are strengthening Bahasa Melayu,” he said, adding that the government also supports multilingual proficiency, including English, Chinese, Tamil and Arabic.

Loke also criticised calls by some MPs for the education minister to resign, saying those who do not support the PH manifesto should be the ones to step down.

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