Partyless for now but Suhaili vows to defend Labuan seat in GE16

2026-03-03 - 01:13

Suhaili Abdul Rahman believes his prominence at the local level can help him retain the Labuan seat. (Facebook pic) PETALING JAYA: Labuan MP Suhaili Abdul Rahman has set his sights on defending his parliamentary seat in the next general election (GE16) despite being partyless. He was sacked by Bersatu in 2023. Suhaili, one of the six Bersatu MPs who declared support for Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim in 2023, did not dismiss the possibility of running as a PKR, Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) or even an independent candidate. He expressed confidence that he is capable of retaining the seat as the incumbent MP, pointing out that no one had expected Perikatan Nasional to win Labuan in the 2022 general election. Suhaili can also bank on his prominence at the local level, having served as Labuan MP for two terms from 1999 to 2008, when he was with Umno and the seat was still a Barisan Nasional stronghold. “If PKR asks me to be their candidate, I will accept. But if Pakatan Harapan and Barisan Nasional form an alliance for GE16, I’m sure that the candidate will be from BN and it won’t be me. “In such a situation, I will either contest as a GRS candidate or an independent. I will not give (any opponent) an easy passage,” he told FMT. Suhaili however did not say if any party has already approached him with an offer to make him their candidate for Labuan in GE16. In the 2022 polls, Suhaili won the Labuan seat with a 708-vote majority ahead of Umno’s Bashir Alias, Warisan’s Rozman Isli, Amanah’s Ramli Tahir and two other candidates. Rozman won the seat on a BN ticket in the 2013 polls and retained it under the Warisan banner in 2018. In October 2023, Suhaili declared support for Anwar’s government, becoming the second Bersatu MP to do so. Four other MPs (Jeli, Gua Musang, Bukit Gantang, Tanjong Karang) followed soon after. Bersatu contended that the six MPs terminated their own memberships through their actions, but Dewan Rakyat Speaker Johari Abdul held that they were sacked by the party, allowing them to keep their seats as independents.