Caretaker deputy prime minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi will let his boss Najib Abdul Razak handle the issue of MyPPP president M Kayveas threatening to quit BN for not being allocated the Cameron Highlands parliamentary seat.

Bernama quoted the BN deputy chairperson as saying that he "understood" the action of Kayveas, whom he knew personally as a "kind person", and that the quit statement was probably aimed to safeguard the feelings of MyPPP members.

"I have met him and I have stated that there is a formula to resolve it, and becoming a candidate is not the ultimate solution.

"There are several ways to provide opportunities to the party concerned, to be part of the administration, as well as in other bodies, under the Malaysian government," Zahid was quoted as telling reporters after attending a function in Bagan Datuk in Perak, today.

On Tuesday, Kayveas has said that his party would reconsider its BN membership after a meeting with coalition chairperson Najib.

He is unhappy that the Cameron Highlands parliamentary seat, in which he has been working the ground in the last few years, has been given to MIC.

Kayveas has also turned down the Segambut seat offered to him by BN.

Thinly veiled statements 'not welcome'

Earlier in the function today, Zahid, without mentioning names, said that any thinly veiled statements or threats issued by any BN component party leader, is "not welcome", as it may jeopardise the coalition's harmony.

"Of course the BN leadership will take into account the agreement on the seats that have been decided, whether they are on loan, temporarily, or swapped with another seat.

"However, if the leader concerned still wants to be insistent, I am certain that he will eventually accept the reality that unity in BN must be given priority," the incumbent Bagan Datuk MP was quoted saying.

According to Zahid, such issues (tussle for seats), is common in politics every time there is a general election, and he believes it does not only occur in BN, but in the opposition as well.

He cited Umno sacrificing seats for BN component party candidates in the last election, because the leadership and party members believed that the individuals concerned could represent BN, and any victory, is attributable to the coalition as a whole.