Following malaysiakini's report yesterday, Keadilan Melaka state chief Khalid Jaffar today confirmed that Barisan Alternatif leaders have discussed the possibility of contesting in all seats in Melaka, parliamentary and state.

The BA state committee had laid down plans to strengthen the opposition front's election machinery in a meeting in Melaka yesterday, he told malaysiakini.

"One of the factors going for us is we now have the resources [to contest] in Melaka," he said, explaining the front's bold plan.

"It is not that we were not capable of contesting before, but the negotiation process in the 1999 general elections did not work out in our favour," he added.

However, Khalid said the committee will leave it to the BA presidential council leaders to decide whether the proposal was feasible.

He said that all branch leaders were favourable to the proposal although they have not arrived at a definite decision.

The state has five parliamentary and 25 state assembly seats.

The proposal, if followed through, will pit the front against its former member DAP in the latter's traditional stronghold in Kota Melaka, the only parliamentary seat DAP contested and won in the 1999 general elections.

DAP also has three state assembly seats in Durian Daun, Tengkera, and Bandar Hilir.

'Suicidal and insane'

In an immediate response, DAP secretary-general Kerk Kim Hock said the move by Keadilan Melaka was "suicidal and insane".

Kerk said he was confident that the BA presidential council will not accept the proposal which he considered "lacked good sense and wisdom".

Asked if the move was a threat to DAP's position, Kerk said if Keadilan had intended such a move, it will only destroy the opposition's chances in the coming elections.

Kerk said despite the DAP quitting BA in September last year due to its inability to resolve the Islamic state issue with its then coalition partner PAS, opposition forces must work out a compromise on the number of seats to contest during election time.

"We may clash in some areas, this is unavoidable. But our duty is to keep the overlapping of seats we want to contest to the minimum," he said.

"Otherwise, we would lose our credibility in the eyes of voters. Eventually the only winner is Barisan Nasional," he added.

The relationship between DAP and Keadilan soured in the wake of the recent Indera Kayangan by-election when DAP prohibited its members from campaigning for the opposition for fear of the party being branded a supporter of the Islamic state espoused by PAS.

After the election results were announced, DAP challenged Keadilan's claim that it had been able to garner more Chinese votes even without the help of DAP.