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Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News |
- Plot to ‘finish off’ Anwar
- Will KL remain Pakatan’s stronghold?
- BN faces formidable opposition
- Opposition ‘spoilers’ giving Sabah BN quiet wins
- PKR, PSM jostle for Kota Damansara seat
- 'Anwar's religious image just a political front'
| Posted: 10 Apr 2013 03:07 PM PDT Umno likely to pull out all the stops in the battle for Permatang Pauh, but observers say it will be difficult to dislodge the opposition leader Athi Shankar, FMT PERMATANG PAUH: Many local Umno chieftains believe that the forthcoming general election would be the best chance to unseat Pakatan Rakyat de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim in his home turf – Permatang Pauh. They claim that many constituents were unhappy with Anwar's performance as their representative and realised that the opposition leader was just a "ceramah" man, who preferred to be in Kuala Lumpur. They claimed that people had realised Anwar had used Permatang Pauh folk as mere pawns for his political chess game to be a national leader. "Anwar should have left Permatang Pauh to contest elsewhere. He should not again ask Permatang Pauh folk to sacrifice for him. Because of him, Permatang Pauh folk are suffering from lack of business and development," claimed Umno members. Whether their claims hold water or not, Umno's campaign against Anwar would be based on those lines. Umno chieftains claim that with the right candidate and strategies, BN would have the best opportunity to finally "kill off" Anwar's political career. They forecast that a defeat for Anwar would break up PKR and make the party redundant. PKR's demise, they said, would then tear apart Pakatan Rakyat, the three-party coalition which had been gearing up all its machinery to capture Putrajaya. Umno leaders are perhaps still living in dream world. Even after the 2008 electoral reverses, they still failed to learn and realise that the country's political landscape is so divided, polarised and hypercritical that any ruling coalition would always face formidable opposition. Stopping Pakatan's march to Putrajaya is one thing while ending Anwar's political career is a different ball game altogether. It would be easier to stop Pakatan, but beating Anwar in his home turf, where he started his political career with a victorious electoral debut in 1982, is a near impossible task. The Permatang Pauh parliamentary constituency is on the world map today because of one man – its favourite son and opposition icon Anwar. Whether one likes him or not, he is the undisputed king of Permatang Pauh. He is always a newsmaker and a hot item for the media. The affection between Permatang Pauh folk and Anwar is said to be too strong. Even when he was in jail, Permatang Pauh folk remained loyal to his family, voting in Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail in the 1999 and 2004 general elections. She also won in 2008 before resigning to pave the way for a by-election which Anwar won in style. "Umno would need a miracle to topple Anwar," said several constituents. As of June 2012, Permatang Pauh has 70,667 registered voters, a huge leap of 12,208 within four years from 58,459 voters in 2008. Malay voters make up about 70%, Chinese 25% while Indians only six percent. Permatang Pauh encompasses three state constituencies – Seberang Jaya, Permatang Pasir and Penanti. Seberang Jaya is the most urbanised of the three and is a cosmopolitan centre with industrial workers, professionals and businessmen making up the majority of its population. It has 29,397 voters with 1,200 postal votes. Permatang Pasir is the rural part of Permatang Pauh with predominantly a Malay-voting population and its main economic activity is rice cultivation with some rubber and palm oil plantations. The constituency has 22,733 voters. Semi-rural constituency Penanti emulates Permatang Pasir's agricultural activities mixed with some commercial activities. It has 18,537 registered voters. Sex videos an outdated strategy The incumbent assemblymen are Umno's Arif Shah Omar Shah of Seberang Jaya, PKR state chairman Mansor Othman of Penanti and PAS state commissioner Mohd Salleh Man of Permatang Pasir. Ironically Permatang Pauh is the only constituency in the country to have three representatives elected in by-elections post-March 2008. Anwar defeated Arif in a by-election in August, 2008 with a thumping majority of 15,671 votes. Mansor and Mohd Salleh won their seats in by-elections in 2009. The 13th general election would mark the first time Anwar would contest in a general election since 1995. Umno Permatang Pauh, which has about 17,000 members from 95 branches, has urged Najib Tun Razak to field strong candidates in all constituencies to give the party a winnable electoral jigsaw. Local leaders said that Umno's chances in Permatang Pauh would be given a tremendous boost if a strong personality challenged Anwar. Although the party has not finalised its candidates, former state PAS leader and corporate figure Mazlan Ismail has been tipped as the favourite to be given the task to unseat Anwar.
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| Will KL remain Pakatan’s stronghold? Posted: 10 Apr 2013 03:00 PM PDT After winning 10 out of 11 parliamentary seats in the 2008 general election, can Pakatan Rakyat manage to achieve the same feat this time around Alyaa Azhar, FMT In the 2008 general election, Pakatan Rakyat was invincible in the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur. The question both their supporters and BN are asking is, can they do it again? Back in the 2008 general election, Pakatan Rakyat almost had a clean sweep, winning 10 out of the 11 parliamentary seats in the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur. Of the 13 parliamentary seats in the Federal Territories, BN only managed to win Setiawangsa, Putrajaya, and Labuan. Parliamentary seats in the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur won by Pakatan were Bandar Tun Razak, Batu, Bukit Bintang, Cheras, Kepong, Lembah Pantai, Segambut, Seputeh, Titiwangsa and Wangsa Maju. For the Bandar Tun Razak parliamentary seat, incumbent Selangor Menteri Besar and PKR's Abdul Khalid Ibrahim defeated MCA's Tan Chai Ho with a 2,515 majority while PKR's Tian Chua defeated Gerakan's Lim Si Pin for the Batu parliamentary seat with a 9,455 majority. MCA's Lee Chong Meng was defeated by DAP's Fong Kui Lun with a 14,277 majority for the Bukit Bintang parliamentary seat and in Cheras, DAP's Tan Kok Wai beat MCA's Jeffrey Goh Sim Ik with a 28,300 majority. DAP's Dr Tan Seng Giaw defeated Gerakan's Lau Hoi Keong with a 23,848 majority for the Kepong parliamentary seat while the Lembah Pantai seat was wrested from Umno's Shahrizat Abdul Jalil with a 2,895 majority by PKR's Nurul Izzah Anwar. DAP's Lim Lip Eng defeated Gerakan's Ma Woei Chyi with a 7,732 majority for the Segambut parliamentary seat while DAP's Teresa Kok defeated MCA's Carol Chew with a whopping 36,492 majority. The lone Kuala Lumpur parliamentary seat won by BN was through Umno's Zulhasnan Rafique who defeated PKR's Ibrahim Yaakob with a 8,134 majority, however, for the Titiwangsa parliamentary seat, PAS' Dr Lo'lo' Mohd Ghazali managed to defeat Umno's Aziz Jamaluddin Mohd Tahir with a 1,972 majority. Wee Choo Keong who contested on a PKR ticket won Wangsa Maju with a slim majority of 150 votes, defeating MCA's Yew Teong Look. Wee became an independent in 2010. In Labuan, Umno's Yusof Mahal defeated independent Lau Seng Kiat with a 8,457 majority. For the Putrajaya parliamentary seat, Umno's Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor defeated PAS' Mohammad Nor Mohamad with a majority of 2,734 votes. Although the Pakatan coalition won 10 out of 11 of the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur seats, BN is confident that other than defending the three seats won in 2008, they will manage to win more seats this coming election. These seats are, Lembah Pantai, Wangsa Maju, Bandar Tun Razak and Batu. For the Lembah Pantai constituency, many have complained that Nurul Izzah has not been on the ground much. Poised to wrest the seat from the incumbent MP would be Federal Territories and Urban Well-Being minister Raja Nong Chik Zainal Abidin. Raja Nong Chik has conveyed his intention to contest for the Lembah Pantai seat if he were to be selected by the BN as its representative. "I am confident of winning the seat based on my service record and relationships established over the past 25 years in the area, starting from my early days as an Umno Youth member," he said. As for the Wangsa Maju parliamentary seat, a three-cornered fight is expected to occur and although there has been talks that MCA is adamant with its choice of Yew Teong Look to contest, Umno's Shafei Abdullah, who is also the prime minister's political secretary, will most likely be fielded as the BN candidate. Deputy prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin recently hinted that Shafei will be fielded in the coming election. "We want the rakyat to support whichever (BN) candidate. If Shafei becomes a candidate, okay. If any other candidate, that is also okay," said Muhyiddin. Shafei could find himself facing Dr Tan Kee Kwong, son of former Gerakan leader Dr Tan Chee Khoon, who is tipped to be PKR's choice. Incumbent independent MP Wee Choo Keong, on the other hand, is expected to defend his seat. For the Bandar Tun Razak seat, Selangor Menteri Besar Abdul Khalid Ibrahim will be fielded again. Insiders claim that Najib will be fielding one of his brothers for the seat. They said that it would be the brother with the least controversy. Suffice to say that it would not be CIMB head Nazir nor Nazim who was linked to the Altantuya case, so that leaves either Johari or Nizam to stand as a candidate for the Bandar Tun Razak parliamentary seat. There are also talks that MCA's Kepong Task Force head Tan Kok Eng is likely to be fielded in Bandar Tun Razak. Kok Eng's father Tan Chai Ho held the Bandar Tun Razak seat for three consecutive terms before losing to Abdul Khalid Ibrahim. Muhyiddin has also voiced his optimism in the BN wresting back the Batu parliamentary seat, based on the positive feedback from voters in the area, which is currently held by PKR vice-president Tian Chua. He added that Batu residents have nothing to be proud of the incumbent MP who he said have made irresponsible and rude remarks about the national security force with regard to the Lahad Datu incursion. The odds are also against Tian Chua who some widely regard as an "absentee MP", because he is hardly seen on the ground. Recently, PAS vice-president Husam Musa has been confirmed to contest for the Putrajaya parliamentary seat and is expected to face incumbent MP and Umno secretary-general Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor. The former Salor assemblyman acknowledged that it would not be an easy task for him to take on Tengku Adnan, describing the latter as a great strategist. For the Titiwangsa seat, there is a 50% chance for both sides of the political divide, since the passing of Dr Lo'lo', a hard working MP who was much loved by her constituents, PAS has been struggling to maintain her legacy.
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| BN faces formidable opposition Posted: 09 Apr 2013 06:08 PM PDT The United Malays National Organisation (Umno), which has controlled Malaysia through coalition governments since independence in 1957, faces a formidable opposition that promises to end corruption, cronyism and authoritarian rule. by M. Jegathesan, AFP Malaysia today announced a general election for May 5, setting a long-awaited date for polls tipped to be its closest ever as the long-ruling government seeks to hold off a surging opposition. Speaking a week after Prime Minister Najib Razak dissolved Parliament, Election Commission chairman Aziz Yusof said the two-week official campaign period would kick off on April 20. The United Malays National Organisation (Umno), which has controlled Malaysia through coalition governments since independence in 1957, faces a formidable opposition that promises to end corruption, cronyism and authoritarian rule. Under Umno, multi-ethnic Malaysia became a regional economic success story while enjoying relative harmony between majority ethnic Malays and its sizeable minorities. Najib hopes to extend the government's unbeaten run in the polls by focusing on his steady economic stewardship and a torrent of cash handouts and other sweeteners to the public. "This election is a choice between sticking with a competent, reform-minded government and risking our prosperity on a fractious, inexperienced opposition," a spokesman for Najib told AFP after the polling date was announced. But the opposition has won support with pledges of clean, transparent governance and respect for civil liberties, enjoying unprecedented freedom to get its message past state-controlled mainstream media via the Internet. The three-party opposition surged to its best showing ever in the 2008 vote, shattering the ruling regime's decades-old aura of invincibility. Speculation over a date for fresh polls has been at fever pitch in the past two years but Najib set the stage last week by dissolving Parliament just ahead of its expiry at the end of the month. The Umno-controlled Barisan Nasional (National Front) coalition had romped to victory in every election before 2008, when it lost its powerful two-thirds majority. It now faces the fight of its life against the Pakatan Rakyat (People's Pact) opposition led by Anwar Ibrahim. The charismatic Anwar was handpicked by authoritarian ex-leader Dr Mahathir Mohamad as heir to Umno but was ousted from government in 1998 and jailed in a power struggle between the two men that left Malaysian politics deeply polarised. "For Pakatan Rakyat it is the best possible chance to offer a viable alternative for democracy and a more responsible government. I think the chances of winning are very good," Anwar told AFP. With a tight contest forecast, both sides have competed to lure voters with a range of electoral promises, stoking debt fears. Najib upped the ante on Saturday, pledging more cash for the poor and other handouts. Pakatan has promised free primary-to-university education, policies to boost incomes, and other measures. The opposition and electoral reform advocates complain the contest is not free and fair due to a system skewed in the government's favour, and have warned of outright fraud, alleging widespread irregularities in voter rolls. But the government rejects the charges, citing recent reforms such as the introduction of indelible ink to prevent multiple voting, and EC chief Aziz said anti-corruption authorities would monitor polling. Najib took the helm of the ethnic Malay-dominated ruling coalition in 2009 after his predecessor resigned amid pressure over the polls setback the year before. Seeking his first mandate from voters, Najib has launched reforms to strengthen the economy and improve civil liberties. The economy grew a steady 5.6 percent last year despite the global malaise. But the opposition calls Najib's reforms half-hearted window-dressing and has harped on recurring corruption scandals linked to the government. BN holds 135 of Parliament's 222 seats and nine of Malaysia's 13 states, while the opposition has 75 seats and control of four states.
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| Opposition ‘spoilers’ giving Sabah BN quiet wins Posted: 09 Apr 2013 04:15 PM PDT STAR and SAPP have reminded Sabah DAP and Sabahans that voting for Pakatan would be a case of jumping from the frying pan into fire situation. Luke Rintod, FMT KOTA KINABALU : Opposition parties DAP, SAPP and STAR have a common enemy in Barisan Nasional. Yet they seem unable to hold it together, constantly kniving each other instead of plotting against their enemy. This in itself is intriguing and is telling of Sabah's layered opposition politics which runs deep on distrust. Yesterday, DAP's sole parliamentarian Hiew King Chew, accused both State Reform Party (STAR) and Sabah Progressive Peoples Party (SAPP) of being "useless" parties that cannot do anything. "It is a waste to vote STAR or SAPP," he had said in statement that lumped the two parties as "spoilers" in the 13th general election. Hiew's statement was featured prominently in Sabah local dailies, spiking the heat in what will be an all-time 'do or die' elections for some groups. SAPP information chief, Chong Pit Fah however shot Hiew's view as "arrogant" and merely promoting Pakatan Rakyat to replace BN, at the expense of Sabahans' real aspiration to restore glory to state autonomy. "Let me remind Hiew that it is his boss Lim Kit Siang who admitted that DAP cannot win Sabah. "So if (Pakatan) cannot win Sabah, why must contest here and become a spoiler?" Chong retorted. Chong was referring to Lim's recent interview with Sin Chew Daily in which he had said that Pakatan was set to recapture Perak, retain Kedah, Penang, Kelantan and Selangor and take over only Perlis and Negeri Sembilan. "It is also strange that Hiew is always complaining about SAPP flags being flown everywhere including near his office, when he never complained about Umno or BN flags," said Chong, who accused Hiew of feeling threatened by surging support for local parties like SAPP. Who's greedy? Chong also said that Hiew's argument that should SAPP form a state government it would run into trouble just like previous Parti Bersatu Sabah's state government was "lame and outdated". "PBS time was different as Umno was very strong then under Dr Mahathir Mohamad, but now the landscape has changed with both BN and PR equally strong or weak, in need of continuous support from Sabah and Sarawak," he said. He also called on Hiew to reflect on Lim and Pakatan leader Anwar Ibrahim's persistent statements that the country is going bankrupt. He said it was Malaya that was going bankrupt and because of their greed, it was bankrupting the whole nation. "Bankrupting Malaysia is not the doing of Sabah and Sarawak. In fact Sabah and Sarawak are cushioning the economic impacts of Malaya's border-less greed and unrepentant plundering the country," he said. Chong, who is poised to stand as SAPP candidate for Kepayan state seat near here, argued that Hiew has no right to accuse state parties of greed. "Unlike DAP, SAPP has always been here for the single reason that it fights for Sabah and Sabahans, and of course we are looking at seats within Sabah of which there are only 25 parliamentary seats and 60 state seats "There are more than 400 state seats in Peninsular and 165 parliamentary seats over there that the DAP and Pakatan can lay their hands on, so why is still the greed to grab the few seats in Sabah too? "Seriously now, who is greedy?" asked Chong.
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| PKR, PSM jostle for Kota Damansara seat Posted: 09 Apr 2013 04:13 PM PDT Selangor PKR chief Azmin Ali has apparently given the green light to a lawyer to campaign in Kota Damansara which is held by PSM. K Pragalath, FMT Parti Sosialis Malaysia's (PSM) sole state seat in Selangor, Kota Damansara, is likely to be taken away from it. Its ally PKR wants the seat and apparently a lawyer, Razlan Jalaludin (not Razlan Hadri as reported earlier), has been given the green light by Selangor PKR chief Azmin Ali to start campaigning in Kota Damansara. This could stem from the fact that PSM chairman Nasir Hashim won the seat under the PKR banner in 2008. He did so because PSM was only officially recognised by the government recently. In 2008, Nasir defeated Zein Isma Ismail of Umno. He polled 11,846 to Zein's 10,771, and won with a majority of 1,075 votes. There were 29,701 voters of which 56% were Malays, 30% Chinese and 14% Indians then. Nasir meanwhile is at a loss on why PKR wants the seat. "We're friends fighting together against a common enemy. I don't know why PKR is fussy about us. "To say that PKR has an issue with our socialist ideology doesn't make any sense… we never had any problems for the past five years," said the 66-year-old founding chairman of PSM. Razlan is also known to be close with Taman Medan state legislative assembly member and deputy speaker Haniza Talha of PKR. Kota Damansara is one of the three seats under Subang parliamentary constituency. The other two are Paya Jaras and Bukit Lanjan. The Subang parliamentary seat is held by R Sivarasa of PKR. Kota Damansara state seat comprises areas such as Ara Damansara, Subang airport, Rubber Research Institute of Malaysia, two new Chinese Villages, Sungai Buloh army camp and Dataran Sunway. It also has the second largest Malay village – Kampung Melayu Subang. Currently, there are 44,000 voters and the Malays make up 55% of them. There are 35% Chinese and 10% Indians. PKR unhappy with PSM logo There appears to be a lot of pressure from PKR for Nasir to use PKR's double white crescent logo instead of the white fist. "We know that they [PKR] want us to run for elections under their ticket. Why should we when we have our own party with our own logo? "Putting a PKR candidate here would only create a three-cornered fight with PSM and PKR going against BN. I am the incumbent. PKR's presence would serve as a spoiler," said the white-haired, bespectacled Nasir who spots a goatee and walks with the aid of a walking stick. There have also been rumours spread via e-mail that Nasir is suffering from cancer. "I have only underwent a whole knee cap replacement surgery about two months ago, which requires me to use a walking stick. I have been given a clean bill of health… no heart problem, cancer, or diabetes," he said. When asked whether PSM's presence would dampen ambitions of certain PKR leaders in the event that Pakatan forms the next federal government, Nasir dismissed the notion. "Two of us can't make a dent or any major difference," said Nasir in reference to his party secretary-general S Arutchelvan who is contesting the Semenyih seat.
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| 'Anwar's religious image just a political front' Posted: 09 Apr 2013 03:50 PM PDT
Former Malaysian Islamic Youth Movement president Dr Yusri Mohamad says Islamic groups have never been in Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's inner circle. Yusri said the concept of 'Anwarism', which had been established in Abim much earlier than in Pas and Parti Keadilan Rakyat, had resulted in those who were not in Anwar's camp being sidelined. Hariz Mohd, NST Another former staunch supporter of Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has come forward to reveal the latter's true colours. Former Malaysian Islamic Youth Movement (Abim) president Dr Yusri Mohamad said Anwar, the opposition adviser who portrayed himself as an Islamic figure, did not have a firm stand on matters pertaining to Islam. Recently, a close acquaintance of Anwar had given a damning assessment of the de facto Parti Keadilan Rakyat leader, saying that Anwar was not fit to lead the country. Academician and former International Islamic University Malaysia deputy rector Prof Datuk Dr Sidek Baba, who has known Anwar for more than 30 years, said Anwar lacked the credibility to be prime minister. Sidek said he realised the person Anwar really was when he did his own research on the latter for three years and met 28 people who were close allies of Anwar. Yusri, who is also chairman of the Coalition of Malaysian Islamic non-governmental organisations (Pembela) and president of the Islamic and Strategic Studies Institute, said he had his fair share in opposition politics, especially during the early years of Reformasi. He said he was worried with what had become of Anwar now. "Anwar only maintains an external 'Islamic' image for political reasons, but does not have any firm stand on religious matters. "Anwar is (politically) clever -- he maintains his contact with Islamic groups, including Abim, and figures like Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi, but these are his contacts only at face value and to a limited extent. "The Islamic groups have never been his inner circle. "He might have consulted them for opinions, but they have no influence in his decision-making," Yusri said in an interview with the New Straits Times. "At the same time, Anwar is trying to please everyone and (in doing so) contradicting himself. "When he is with the liberals, he would support their cause. "When he is with the Muslim groups, he would say something totally opposite. "What is his real stand?" On Abim's close relations with Anwar, Yusri said the movement should distance itself from partisan politics. He claimed that Abim had lost influence in the country's Islamic dakwah for focusing too much to politics. "After Anwar left Abim, the movement's focus still tends to be with him instead of core business, like education. "I used to rebuff when some people jokingly referred to Abim as 'Anwar Bin Ibrahim's Movement', but if you look at its track record, it is true to some extent. "Abim has not been able to divorce itself from the individual. "Too much (of its) attention and imagination (are) coloured by Anwar. This is unfortunate as Abim can be bigger than Anwar or any political leader by contributing to education and societal development, among others." Yusri added that despite riding on the image of an Islamic leader because of his background in Abim, Anwar had not extended much help to the organisation throughout his political years. However, Abim leaders, who valued the sense of camaraderie, still stood behind Anwar when he was fired from the cabinet. Yusri said the concept of 'Anwarism', which had been established in Abim much earlier than in Pas and Parti Keadilan Rakyat, had resulted in those who were not in Anwar's camp being sidelined. "That is why people like me and former Abim secretary-general Datuk Sidek, who adopt a different and more critical approach, are not welcomed in the organisation's circle. "It can be said that we are ostracised. I am also the only former president who has not been invited into Abim's Syura council." Yusri also said the future of Islam in Malaysia would be in danger should Pakatan Rakyat be given the mandate to run the country. "In issues like apostasy, religious pluralism and the use of the word 'Allah', the people cannot help but notice Pakatan's tendency to be too liberalist or pluralist. "This is worrying because from a religious perspective, if one is willing to compromise in matters of faith and is disloyal to the teachings of Islam, one is courting disaster." Yusri, who was the sixth Abim president from 2005 to 2009, said Barisan Nasional had a good track record in maintaining peace and stability in a multireligious and multiracial nation. "A good thing about Umno leaders is that although they are not ulama (Islamic scholars), they are able to carry out their main responsibility, which is to drive the country forward. "Knowing that religion is not their forte, they also do not try to be smart when it comes to religious matters. "Umno leaders will listen to and have respect for Islamic scholars. "They have humility and accept specialisation and authority. "However, this is not the case with some Pakatan leaders, including Anwar, who tend to be too adventurous in Islamic affairs."
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