Selangor BN chairman Megat Zulkarnain Omardin said they respected such calls, including one voiced recently by state MCA Youth chief Tan Jie Sen.

“It is the opinion of some MCA members and leaders, and it is not a conclusive stance,” he told FMT.

On April 1, Tan criticised BN chairman Ahmad Zahid Hamidi for announcing that the coalition would not contest the by-election without prior consultation with its government allies.

According to a report by Oriental Daily, Tan proposed that MCA independently contest the by-election on May 11, saying a victory will see the party assume the role of the opposition in the state assembly.

Like its federal counterpart, the Selangor government is also a unity government comprising both Pakatan Harapan and BN.

On March 22, Zahid announced that BN would not contest the seat and would instead support a unity government candidate to retain the seat, previously held by DAP.

Megat Zulkarnain, who is also the Selangor Umno chairman, also said they were ready to face the by-election, despite criticism from their former treasurer, Tengku Zafrul Aziz, of the state chapter.

He said he has been briefed by all parties in Hulu Selangor.

Tengku Zafrul, who resigned from his post recently, criticised the state chapter for its lukewarm efforts to revive itself following its poor performance in last year’s state election.

He said the outcome of the state election in August, where Selangor Umno secured only two of the 12 seats it contested, should have served as an “eye-opener”.

The Kuala Kubu Baharu seat fell vacant with the death of DAP’s three-term assemblyman Lee Kee Hiong on March 21.