AYER KEROH: Barisan Nasional will stick with Datuk Seri Sulaiman Md Ali as its chief minister designate if it wins the state election, says Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan.

       The Barisan election director said that Sulaiman was the incumbent chief minister and he should continue to helm the state administration.

       Mohamad added that Sulaiman had a clean track record and good performance during his administration.

       "If we win, we will allow Sulaiman to be the next chief minister from Barisan," he told a press conference on Wednesday (Nov 10).

       Asked whether Melaka Barisan chief Datuk Seri Ab Rauf Md Yusoh would be given any post if he won the Tanjung Bidara state seat, Mohamad said that it depended on the situation.

       Mohamad added that what was important was that they had confirmed who would be the chief minister.

       Asked if Barisan was prepared to cooperate with other candidates from other coalition such Perikatan Nasional or PAS once it wins the election, Mohamad said that Barisan would welcome them.

       "But as I mentioned, we need a main thrust party that will be able to form the government first.

       "If we want political stability, the core party must be able to form the government.

       "Because we do not want an instance where parties could pull their support and cause the government to collapse.

       "The rakyat will suffer again. I hope voters will pick parties with a good and proven track record," said Mohamad.

       The Election Commission had set Nov 8 as the nomination day for the Melaka state election and Nov 20 for polling.

       The Melaka State Legislative Assembly has 28 seats and the electoral roll contains 495,196 voters.