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Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News

PKR a stumbling block for Pakatan in NS
New faces may not be new winners
GE13: Analysts: Three-cornered fights will hurt Penang BN further
Anwar plays political poker in Sabah
Chua Jui Meng's final chance
Give Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail a seat: SIGN THE PETITION
April 13, 2013: Our 40th wedding anniversary in Liverpool (VIDEO INSIDE)

Posted: 17 Apr 2013 02:38 PM PDT

The delay in Pakatan Rakyat announcing its candidates list for the state is largely due to PKR state chief Kamarul Baharin Abbas's incompetency, claim party insiders.

(FMT) - Party infighting in causing a major headache for PKR's de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim in Negeri Sembilan.

The rift is so bad that it is causing unnecessary and potentially harmful distraction as the party aims to do well in the state for the coming general election.

Pakatan Rakyat is confident of winning this state and PKR's two other partners – DAP and PAS – have finalised their candidates and are ready for battle.

However the scenario in PKR is very different. PKR is still undecided on who to field in their alloted three parliamentary and 13 state seats in Negeri Sembilan.

Speculation is that Anwar is unhappy with Negeri Sembilan PKR chairman Kamarul Baharin Abbas on the party's final candidates list for the state.

Kamarul is said to have dropped "super candidates" like former Port Dickson state assemblyman, M Ravi and Seremban PKR deputy chief, Dr Mohamad Rafie Abdul Malek for the Ampangan state seat.

Instead Kamarul had listed state PKR vice-chairman V Aridass for Port Dickson to replace the popular and hardworking Ravi, and has named himself for Ampangan by sidelining Rafie.

Rafie has been slated to fight for the Rembau parliamentary seat, which will be contested by Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin.

The move has set off alarm bells in the state PKR as supporters of both Ravi and Rafie are upset with the move which is aimed to kill off their political careers.

"If Rafie goes to Rembau, he would definitely lose. He would go up against Khairy, who is no pushover in Rembau. Rafie is not familiar with the voters there.

"As far as Ravi is concerned, he is the best candidate for Port Dickson. Everyone knows him. Even if Ravi is given the Teluk Kemang parliamentary seat, he can win it as he is that strong here. Everyone knows him," said a Pakatan Rakyat source, who declined to be named.

Rafie on the other hand, the source said, stepped into Ampangan sometime in 2009 after the incumbent state assemblymen, Rashid Latiff fell sick and underwent a by-pass heart surgery. He has managed to connect with voters in Ampangan.

Kamarul's MB ambition

A PKR source meanwhile said the move to "kill off" Rafie was because of Kamarul's ambition to be the Negeri Sembilan Menteri Besar should Pakatan wins the state.

"But Kamarul does not realise that even if he contests in Ampangan, he would lose, His track record in Teluk Kemang is poor. The voters know it, the whole state knows it," said the source.

While state PKR leaders are haggling over seats, PAS and DAP agree that Ravi and Rafie are the best candidates for Port Dickson and Ampangan respectively.

"Without doubt Ravi and Rafie should cruise to easy victory in Port Dickson and Ampangan", said the PAS leader when contacted by FMT.

"If you going to field a different candidate in Port Dickson and Ampangan other than Ravi and Rafie, I think PKR would be handing over both seats in silver plater to the BN. If this is the case, we are not going to form the next state government," said an agitated DAP leader.

However, the two component parties are not about to get involved in the PKR internal squabble.

"This is PKR's internal matter. We can't interfere. We have to respect each party. We know the problem in Negeri Sembilan PKR, but there is nothing much we can do about it," said a state DAP leader, who declined to be named.

READ MORE HERE

New faces may not be new winners

Posted: 17 Apr 2013 02:22 PM PDT

By dropping the veterans, however, Datuk Seri Najib risks angering the discarded ones, some of whom are already threatening to run as independent candidates.

Carolyn Hong, ST

IN 2008, the youngest candidate on the ballot was the opposition Parti Keadilan Rakyat's information chief Nik Nazmi Ahmad, then 26.

This time, the honour goes to Mr Daniel Wa, 25, from the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA).

Mr Wa, an economics graduate working for an MCA member of parliament, is among the 40 per cent of candidates who are new faces being trotted out by the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) as it seeks to convince voters that it has a slate of young and vibrant candidates to challenge Pakatan Rakyat's (PR's) young stars.

Prime Minister Najib Razak took pains to stress that one-third of his 222 parliamentary candidates and half of the 505 state candidates are new, as he has dropped five Cabinet ministers and other veterans.

Political analyst Shamsul Adabi Mamat from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia said while the new candidates may not be known nationally, they come from the communities where they are being fielded.

"In 2008, there were many parachute candidates, but this time, they appear to be locals from a variety of backgrounds," he added. "I think that's what the people want to see."

By dropping the veterans, however, Datuk Seri Najib risks angering the discarded ones, some of whom are already threatening to run as independent candidates.

Three veteran leaders from Penang, including former MP Shariff Omar, said they will decide soon whether to contest against their own parties. Former MCA president Ong Tee Keat is also keeping that option open after being dropped.

In the 2008 General Election, Mr Najib's predecessor Abdullah Badawi had to deal with peeved saboteurs in many states, despite changing only 20 per cent to 30 per cent of the list.

That contributed to BN's loss of its two-thirds majority in Parliament for the first time since 1969.

Still, stuffing the candidates' list with new faces is no guarantee of a better performance for BN in the May 5 polls, with a fierce fight between BN and the opposition PR expected.

After all, half of the candidates the MCA introduced in 2008 were new faces, but it still did badly.

The advantage of fielding unknown candidates is that they have fewer skeletons in the closet.

The disadvantage is that they are unknown.

Posted: 17 Apr 2013 02:17 PM PDT

Azril Anuuar, fz.com

Three-cornered fights that may take place in Penang come nomination day on Saturday will thwart BN's chances of retaking the state from the Pakatan Rakyat, say analysts.

Unlike the scenario prior to the 2008 general election, where three-cornered fights have always been in BN's favour, this time around such contests will dilute the votes for the coalition, rather than for its opponents.

However, that would depend on whether BN leaders who have not been named as candidates do contest as independents, said Professor James Chin, head of the School of Political Science at Monash University, Kuala Lumpur.

"We will not know for sure if they are going to contest until nomination day. All those who are unhappy (because they were not selected to contest) have been called up to speak to (BN chairman Datuk Seri) Najib Razak's special officers for their 'retirement package'.

"So it will also depend on how good the 'retirement package' is that is being offered to them. But in the event that they do contest, it will split the vote and this will make it bad for Umno (and BN as a whole). Umno and BN will suffer," said Chin.

Penang BN revealed their candidate list on Tuesday and among those who were dropped was the popular former Tasek Gelugor MP Datuk Seri Shariff Omar.

Following this Shariff, who was former Deputy Chief Minister in the previous government, announced that he would be standing as an independent. He made the announcement at a ceramah at his home attended by around 2,000 supporters who turned up to back his decision.

Former Bernama editor-in-chief Datuk Seri Azman Ujang believed that BN took "unnecessary risks" by not fielding the multi-lingual Shariff, especially in light of the sacrifice he made in 2008 when his seat was given to then Second Finance Minister Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop.

"Five years ago Shariff Omar was already an angry person because then Prime Minister Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi fielded Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop who was a senator in Shariff's traditional seat in Tasek Gelugor.

"Three months ago Shariff said he wanted his seat back because he is the division chief there. His decision is not surprising and according to him he will be an independent and a PR friendly candidate," said Azman.

To make matters worse, Shariff is also fielding two of his lieutenants, namely, Umno division committee member Mustaffa Idrus to contest in the Teluk Ayer Tawar state seat and state Perkasa vice president Azmi Alang to contest in the Sungai Dua state seat.

"Prior to 2008, three-cornered fights have always been in BN's favour because the Opposition were not working hand in hand and they neutralised one another. Now it will depend on the seat," said Azman.

On three-cornered fights, DAP election strategist and former academic Dr Ong Kian Ming said: "In a seat like Tasek Gelugor where the margin is not as strong (in favour of BN) as in Kepala Batas it will be the determining factor whether or not PR or BN will win the seat."

READ MORE HERE

Anwar plays political poker in Sabah

Posted: 15 Apr 2013 09:12 PM PDT

Sabah Pakatan Rakyat is yet to consolidate its list of candidates as it toys with STAR and SAPP.

Pushparani Thilaganathan, FMT

With nominations just days away, speculations are rife that Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim is engaging Jeffrey Kitingan's State Reform Party (STAR) in a 11th hour bid to find a solution to what promises to be a crippling election for Pakatan Rakyat if it remains adamant and uncompromising on Sabah seats.

Nomination is set for April 20 and by tomorrow all state Barisan Nasional component parties would have announced their list of candidates.

In Sabah, KadazanDusunMurut (KDM)-based Upko and Parti Bersatu Rakyat Sabah (PBRS) have already announced their candidates. Umno, Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) and Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) are expected to follow suit.

Amidst this, Sabah Pakatan Rakyat is yet to consolidate its list.

A pre-emptive announcement of some candidates by PKR Tuaran division chief Ansari Abdullah earlier this month, which was later rubbished by party deputy president Azmin Ali, has made clear the depth of distrust and angst within PKR members of the PKR central leadership.

As such, these late-in-day "talks" with local parties can only mean that Anwar is troubled.

Barely a week ago, Anwar said he would direct Sabah Pakatan to re-open talks – which he had himself terminated – with Sabah Progressive People's Party (SAPP).

Anwar had, at one point, ridiculed SAPP when he asked the party to prove its worth. And this too after incessant meetings dating back to 2011 to discuss possible straight fights.

But SAPP sources said today that they have not been approached "as yet and time is running out".

SAPP is aiming to contest in 20 state and about 10 parliamentary seats.

STAR, meanwhile, is targeting to contest in at least 40 state and up to 20 parliamentary seats.

Word is that STAR, while weak on infrastructure, has a KDM-reach that outruns PKR's and Anwar knows this.

Thus, this explains the move to reach out to Jeffrey. According to sources, Anwar's man spoke to Jeffrey late last week and "made him an offer".

Meanwhile, rippling through the grapevine here are talks that Anwar's partiality towards Wilfred Bumburing and Lajim Ukin has backfired. Both defected from Barisan Nasional in July last year, pledging their allegiance to Anwar vis-a-vis PKR.

Anwar had left Bumburing to harness the KDMs and Lajim to look into the Muslim votes.

Herein lies the hiccup. Rumours are that Pakatan needs a bulk of KDM votes and that it doesn't have it yet.

A wily politician

Said a PKR member, who declined to be named: "The situation has changed. The Muslim seats can go anywhere. Lajim has influence over a few Bisaya seats.

"But Wilfred [Bumburing] is in trouble. People don't trust him. Our members are saying if he [Bumburing] is sincere, then why is he not a PKR member? They will not support any of his candidates."

Both Bumburing and Lajim are MPs and are likely to defend their Tuaran and Beaufort seats under the PKR banner. Both have also been pushing for their own followers to be given seats and that has not gone down well with members.

But Anwar is going all-out to get Putrajaya and has declared that he needs the numbers from Sabah and Sarawak to cap their quest.

READ MORE HERE

Chua Jui Meng's final chance

Posted: 15 Apr 2013 07:28 PM PDT

Lim Mun Fah, Sin Chew

From a well respected federal minister to an ordinary man in the street. From a key leader in the ruling coalition to one in the opposition pact. From someone who told people not to act childish to one told likewise by others. From hiding away from public radar to open outpour of disgruntlement. From having no place to go to some place he can now stake his future on.

Chua Jui Meng's more recent political journey has made a truly exciting and intriguing political soap opera of unexpected upheavals and dramatic twists.

His frequent turnarounds seem to illustrate the point that there are no permanent friends nor foes in politics.

Everything has to go back to square one. The naked political reality that lies before this PKR Johor chairman is: This is going to be your very last chance. Whether you can revive your political prominence will very much depend on the outcome of the Segamat battle.

There are 47,115 voters in the Segamat parliamentary constituency, of whom 21,502 or 45.64% are Chinese, 20,921 (44.4%) Malays and 4,692 (9.96%) Indians and others. Looking at the figures, this is going to be a mixed constituency that warrants some really good effort to win.

If the internal conflicts within Pakatan Rakyat could be resolved amicably, there are still chances for Jui Meng to clinch a "surprise win" and contribute positively towards Pakatan's advances towards Putrajaya.

If things go as expected, Jui Meng is to face off with human resources minister S. Subramaniam from MIC, who defeated DAP's Pang Hok Liong by a reduced majority of 2,991 in the 2008 elections.

A lot of changes took place during the last five years, impacting the stronghold of BN while arousing desires for change among the people in the state.

Segamat's residents are not to be exempted. They have loudly demanded the establishment of an independent Chinese secondary school in town, and this gives Jui Meng a glimmer of hope to unseat BN in Segamat.

However, Subramaniam has also worked very hard over the past five years and feedback from the voters has been largely positive. While he may not stop the drain of Chinese votes towards the opposition, he should be able to retain the solid support from the local Malays and Indians.

Notably, the electorate structure of Segamat has experienced some changes over the same period of time. There are now 6,407 more voters than in 2008, among whom 4,273 are Malays, bringing the Malay percentage higher from 40.9% to 44.4%. On the contrary, the figures for Chinese and Indian voters pale at 1,950 (a drop of 2.39% in overall electorate) and 184 (-1.11%) respectively.

Whether the surge of Malay voters could offset the negative swing of Chinese votes would be a key factor to determine the final outcome of the race.

Another delicate factor will be the Indians and other races who will assume the role of the ultimate kingmakers in a tightly fought battle.

Give Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail a seat: SIGN THE PETITION

Posted: 14 Apr 2013 11:47 PM PDT