The tit-for-tat accusations between Parti Keadilan Rakyat (Keadilan) and DAP over their failed seat negotiations for the coming general electioncontinues today with top leaders from both parties issuing statements casting blame on the other.

The two opposition parties were engaged in three-cornered fights with Barisan Nasional (BN) in more than 20 seats nationwide but the final number fell when Keadilan agreed to pull out of several key constituencies in Penang and Perak.

These include the Ipoh Timor and Bukit Gelugor parliamentary seats where DAP's top leaders Lim Kit Siang and Karpal Singh are now set for one-to-one battles with MCA's Thong Fah Chong and Lim Boo Chang respectively.

But in a statement today, Keadilan Election 2004 spokesperson Rustam A Sani said DAP has reneged on its promise to withdraw from three state seats although this is disputed in a separate statement by DAP secretary-general Kerk Kim Hock.

"DAP agreed in principle not to field candidates in the state assembly seats of Kajang (Selangor), Jelapang (Perak) and Simpang Pulai (Perak), and they said they needed time to convince their candidates to withdraw," said Rustam.

He said Keadilan received 'a shock' when it found that the DAP candidates did not subsequently withdraw.

"Keadilan hopes that DAP will abide by its promise and direct the candidates in Jelapang and Simpang Pulai to withdraw immediately to ensure opposition unity and avoid giving BN an added advantage," he added.

There are also seats where opposition parties have fielded candidates although agreements were reached for only Keadilan to contest, he revealed.

Wasted seats

Rustam expressed disappointment with DAP for its candidates' failure to qualify in several areas on nomination day on March 13 thereby allowing walkovers by the BN contestants.

"For the state seat of Rawang (Selangor), for instance, the situation was only saved by the presence of an independent candidate," he said.

Other seats where DAP candidates were disqualified include the Selangor state seat of Subang Jaya and the Perak state seat of Pokok Assam.

While new election regulations stipulate that candidates can withdraw up to three days from nomination day - until late tomorrow - DAP sources in Perak said this is unlikely given their candidates' insistence on staying in their areas.

Of the three disputed seats in Perak, Keadilan is said to have a larger presence than DAP in Jelapang and Simpang Pulai while the reverse has been observed for the Bercham state seat.

In Penang too, the Bukit Kawan parliamentary seat and the state seats of Bukit Tambun and Sungai Pinang are likely to see three-cornered fights between the BN, DAP and Keadilan

What agreement?

But DAP's version of the whole issue differs with Kerk saying that "the question of DAP not honouring its agreement does not arise since no such agreement was reached in the first place as claimed by Keadilan."

Kerk said he agreed to allow discussions over the disputed seats in Penang and Perak by state leaders but added that all final decisions would have to go through the party's national leaders.

"I instructed Ronnie Liu, DAP's publicity secretary, who was coordinating the talks between Keadilan Youth leader Low Chee Chong and DAP Perak chairperson Ngeh Koo Ham, that any final agreement must be ratified by top leaders of both parties, namely (Keadilan president) Dr Wan Azizah and myself," he said.

"I last spoke to Wan Azizah on March 9 and there has been no follow-up communication between us since then," he added.

He also maintained that he has not received any report from the DAP state chairpersons in Penang and Perak on any changes in the status of DAP candidates for the disputed seats.

"The two (state chairpersons) are fully aware that any agreement reached must first be approved by me, the party secretary-general," he said.