“It is ludicrous to say the least,” said Suhaizan. He described the opposition’s arguments as an effort to mislead the people.

“If we do the sum, subtracting one from 148 doesn’t threaten the federal government. They (PN) can use whatever method they want to convince voters, but mathematically, it’s incorrect and unreasonable.”

The unity coalition holds 148 seats in the Dewan Rakyat, for a two-thirds majority of the 222-seat chamber. PN holds 73 seats. A simple majority of 122 seats is required to form a government.

“In Johor, the people are unique; they tend to be more modest in many aspects and think rationally about whether they can accept the propaganda or not,” he told reporters during a by-election campaign walkabout session at the night market near Taman Sentosa in Johor Bahru today.

The claim about a change in federal government was made by PAS President Abdul Hadi Awang, who said that if PN wins the by-election, the loss of the seat would lead to a significant change at the federal government level.

In Pulai, Suhaizan faces a three-cornered fight against Zulkifli Jaafar of PN and independent candidate Samsudin Fauzi.