Bagan Pinang: PAS rebels
Wednesday October 14, 2009
Mukhriz: ‘PAS votes’ may have led to big BN win
KUALA LUMPUR: Dissatisfaction among PAS supporters with the party’s choice of candidate in Bagan Pinang could have swung votes in favour of Barisan Nasional, said Jerlun MP Datuk Mukhriz Mahathir.
This, he added, could have contributed to Barisan’s thumping 5,435-vote majority.
Furthermore, Barisan candidate Tan Sri Isa Samad was well-known and well-liked in the state, he said.
He also said that it was not unusual for Barisan candidates to get PAS votes during elections.
“In Jerlun, where I contested the parliamentary seat, PAS members and supporters’ votes contributed to our landslide majority.
“As we get support from across the political divide, we must serve and look into the welfare of all rakyat,” he said.
On PAS’ threat to dispute the by-election results in court, Mukhriz said it was not proper for PAS leaders to cry foul as Isa won fair and square.
On the proposed amendments to Umno’s constitution to be tabled during the party’s general assembly tomorrow, Mukhriz said it was pertinent for the party to maintain its focus on its original struggles.
Bagan Pinang: Unbelievable results
How on earth could we unearth the real reasons for the lost?
Certainly the mood from the ground differs with the results….that is a fact.
Why couldn’t Pakatan Rakyat translate mood to votes as before?
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Political analyst Ong Kian Ming made the estimation based on the Election Commission’s data when he examined the change in the level of BN support from 2008 to 2009 by ‘saluran’ or polling stream and the ethnic composition of the respective ‘saluran’.
According to him, Umno candidate Mohd Isa Samad had also registered an increase of 4 percent in Malay support in the Negri Sembilan state seat compared to the results in the 2008 general election.
In the Sunday’s by-election, Isa doubled the majority garnered by Azman Mohammad Noor when the late Umno candidate crushed his PAS opponent last year.
Isa (right with garland), a former cabinet minister, who was suspended from the party for three years after being found guilty of vote buying in Umno polls, took the seat with a margin of 5,435 votes.
Ong said that based on the results of the Bagan Pinang by-election, 67 percent of Malay voters had backed Isa.
Interestingly, a higher proportion – 73 percent – of non-Malay voters gave their support to the Umno candidate.
Three key factors
Ong identified three key factors which led to the dramatic voter swing back to BN.
- Isa’s long standing presence in the constituency as well as in the state as a former MB.
- The weakness of the PAS candidate and machinery.
- The salience of local issues that were perceived to be more important than national issues like the cow-head incident in Shah Alam and the Teoh Beng Hock case.
As for the postal voters, which make up 40 percent of the state constituency, Ong said Prime Minister Najib Razak’s reputation and popularity as the former long-standing defence minister has ensured that Umno received the lion share of the votes.
Isa bagged 3,521 postal votes while his rival, PAS’ Zulkefly Mohamad Omar pulled in a measly 601 votes.
In the 2008 general election, BN got 3,080 postal votes against PAS’ 1,189.
Wake-up call for Pakatan
Ong (below) however added that the hefty swing seen in Bagan Pinang may not be so pronounced in other constituencies.
“Any swing towards the BN (elsewhere) would be much less because of the absence of postal votes and the inability to have another Isa-type candidate for Umno.”
He also questioned whether BN’s feat could be replicated in another racially-mixed seat where the opposition was the incumbent.
“Any seat in an urban area with a larger Chinese voter presence would not be so easy for the BN to swing to the same extent.
“It would be mistaken to think that such a large vote swing could be manufactured in another constituency, for example in Selangor or Kuala Lumpur.”
Nevertheless, he said Bagan Pinang is a wake-up call for Pakatan Rakyat.
“It is a stark reminder, especially to PAS, that they cannot take the non-Malay votes for granted.”
PAS kalah kenapa?
On the swing of Chinese votes, he said: “They wanted to teach us a lesson.”
Yesterday’s by-election saw BN candidate Isa Samad trouncing his PAS rival Zulkefly Mohamad Noor with a thumping majority of 5,000 votes.
In view of this, Salahuddin said Pakatan has to review its strengths and performance.
“One of the major factors why the Indian community is divided is because of the internal problems within MIC and the formation of the Malaysian Makkal Sakti Party,” he said.
“In the last (general) election we got strong support from the Indian community… they had no choice, there was no alternative and they had high expectations of Pakatan.
“Now, they are not all for the BN government but I would say that their support is not as solid as it was in the last election (for Pakatan),” he added.
Salahuddin said Pakatan need to be more serious in addressing the woes faced by the Indian community.”Pakatan is not doing enough,” he added.
Surprised by Chinese swing
Meanwhile, Salahuddin said he was surprised that Chinese voters had also turned their backs on Pakatan.
“To some extent a certain percentage might have been influenced by Prime Minister Najib Razak’s ’1Malaysia’ concept,” he noted.
Salahuddin pointed out that the Chinese community has been keeping a close watch on Pakatan’s progress, especially in Selangor, since the last general election.
“They see that we are not serious in proving our unity with the internal conflicts we have been facing lately,” he said.
“The Chinese wanted to send a clear signal to Pakatan to teach us a lesson,” he added.
However, he stressed that Pakatan was the ‘underdog’ in the Bagan Pinang by-election and the main priority was to change the mindset of the people especially in doing away with corruption.
“That was our main mission, to build a strong case to fight corruption… we may have lost the battle but we will win the war,” he said.
Isa was stripped of his Umno vice-presidency after being convicted of money politics by the Umno disciplinary board in 2005. His six-year suspension was later reduced to three upon appeal and ended in 2008.
It’s not an issue of race
Meanwhile, PKR’s strategist Tian Chua stressed that the issue should not be looked at from a racial viewpoint.
“Usually in rural areas, the people are more susceptible to BN’s money politics. However, it has been proven that such tactics do not work in urban areas.
“It is not race but rather the social economics of the people. The poorer ones are less educated and more susceptible to material gains and intimidation,” he said.
“If we do not curb money politics, BN can buy voters and our system can never be clean. We have to stop thinking in terms of race. The desire for change cuts across racial lines,” he added.
Criticising Isa’s candidacy, Tian asked why BN did not field another candidate if the Bagan Pinang constituency is considered a stronghold for the ruling coalition.
“Why didn’t Najib put someone else who is not convicted of corruption? Najib chose to nominate a friend of his.
“Therefore, it could be seen that Umno has no determination to make credible changes in leadership and we can expect to see the same kind of corrupted leaders,” he added.
Bagan Pinang returning feudal politics & politician
After a string of by-election defeats, Barisan Nasional has finally tasted the sweetness of victory in Bagan Pinang tonight. And it was no ordinary win.
The coalition had retained the state seat with a huge majority, winning in all the eight polling districts and more importantly, witnessing an increase in support from the non-Malays.
According to MIC sources, out of the 1,870 Indians who voted, BN got a whopping 1,387 votes while PAS only managed 483.
MIC president S Samy Vellu, who had hit the campaign trail with a vengeance in order to prove a point, later claimed credit for the reversal.
“We (MIC) have kept our promise to the prime minister by delivering the Indian votes to BN.
“This was his (Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak) KPI (key performance index) to MIC,” he said in a statement.
MIC vice-president S Subramaniam added that this was an indication that the Indians were returning to the BN fold.
With Bagan Pinang, the by-election contest tally now stands at 7-2, with Pakatan Rakyat previously sweeping all but Sarawak’s Batang Ai.
The latest victory could not have come at a better time and would definitely provide the defeat-weary BN and its chief with a much-needed boost.
Until now, it had appeared that the ruling coalition could not do anything right and pundits were already toying with the possibility of a change of government in the next general election.
With infighting and credibility issues plaguing its component parties, BN’s future seemed bleak and morale had sunk to new depths.
So rest assured that while the unfavourable outcome of previous by-elections received minimal media coverage, this result would surely make headlines to underscore BN’s return from a state of political comatose.
Isa bigger than Umno
However once the initial euphoria subsides, the ruling coalition must look into the root causes or in this case the ‘root cause’ for the resounding victory because unlike previous by-elections, Bagan Pinang is unique.
Therefore it might not be the simple case of voters, especially the non-Malays, having embraced BN again.
Why?
Because the Umno/BN candidate Isa Samad walks taller than his party, at least in the state of Negeri Sembilan.
Despite being suspended for money politics five years ago, the controversy had done little to damage the politician’s reputation among the people of his state.
After all, Isa was menteri besar for 22 years and it is common knowledge that the Tamil-speaking Umno leader is well liked by all races.
Even Umno’s top brass had to bow to this as reports suggested that fielding any other candidate could have proved disastrous.
Although coming under intense criticism for allowing a disbarred lawyer to contest in August’s Permatang Pasir by-election, Umno had little choice but to name another ‘tainted’ candidate this time around.
Umno’s grand masters Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah had also protested against Isa’s candidacy but even their voices drowned under the pressure from the grassroots who wanted the former MB and no one else.
Some of his hardcore supporters were of the opinion that Isa, a former Umno vice-president, would have won the seat even if he had stood as an independent.
“He may look small in size but he is bigger than Umno, MIC and MCA. He doesn’t need them to campaign for him. He would have got the votes of all the three races on his own,” said one jubilant supporter.
With this possibility looming, Umno found itself trapped in a ‘Catch 22′ situation.
So it decided that it would rather win with a politician whom it had condemned as corrupt rather than risk making the ‘morally correct’ decision and suffer another humiliation.
Voted for the man, not the party
Even Chinese voters – who had cast their ballots for PAS in the last general election after seeing red with Umno over the keris issue – could not resist the Isa charm.
And most of them admitted that they had voted for the man and not for his party.
According to them, the issue was simple. Isa had been very supportive of the local Chinese community during his tenure as menteri besar.
However, the opposition had a different take.
They claimed that the odds were stacked against them right from the start as the playing field in Bagan Pinang was never level given the fact that there are more than 4,000 postal votes which make up one third of the total votes.
Allegations and criticisms aside, it would be hard for any party or individual apart from Isa to claim credit for this landslide triumph.
How did Pakatan Rakyat lose?
Countrary to the ground feel…
Did the machinery of Pakatan Rakyat failed to act as they should at every level and critical areas of winning an election?
or was there hanky panky in the pre-election and election process via the SPR…?
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6.42pm: Judging by the count so far, Umno’s Isa Samad is set to win the Bagan Pinang by-election with a landslide.
Unofficial – with 8,708 votes (78 percent) counted:
Mohd Isa Abd Samad (BN): 6,705
Zulkefly Mohamad Omar (PAS): 2,003
Majority: 4,702
Spoilt votes: 67
6.31pm: Unofficial – the count so far:
Mohd Isa Abd Samad (BN): 6,358
Zulkefly Mohamad Omar (PAS): 1,847
Majority: 4,511
Spoilt votes: 62
6.20pm: According to the early count in four of the eight polling districts in Bagan Pinang, BN is leading.
Ladang Bradwall (BN – 215, PAS – 90)
Pekan Silliau (BN – 349, PAS – 113)
Ladang Atherton (BN – 218, PAS – 115)
Sua Betong (BN – 371, PAS – 149)
In the 2008 general election, PAS won Pekan Silliau, Ladang Atherton and Sua Betong. It is currently trailing in all these polling stations.
Umno bagged the other five polliing districts – Ladang Bradwall, Taman Eastern, Kampung Bagan Pinang, Si Rusa and Teluk Kemang.
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“Much as the likely win by Isa would be welcomed by the leadership after the string of losses Umno has suffered, I am afraid what the nation needs is for Umno to lose again. This is because again we have fielded a candidate proven to be corrupt.
“A win by Isa would translate into an endorsement of corruption-as-usual within the party and the government that it leads,” he said.
“For the good of the party, the dignity of the Malay community it claims to represent and for the sake of the nationwide reform in governance and politics that we must undergo, it would be better if Umno lost today, and used the loss to begin internal reform.
“Corruption is the scourge of the country. Umno is a step away from being identified with that scourge,” added the veteran politician.
From the onset, Tengku Razaleigh had voiced his dissatisfaction against Umno’s decision to field Isa, the former menteri besar of Negeri Sembilan.
Isa was suspended from Umno in 2004 after being found guilty of money politics during the party polls.Former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad was also unhappy with the choice.
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LATEST UPDATES5pm: Polling ends and counting of the votes is expected to start soon. A total of 11,157 or 81.65 percent of voters – this includes postal votes – had cast their ballots.
This is similar to the 81.59 percent turnout at the 2008 general election, despite experiencing intermittent rain in Bagan Pinang today.
4.25pm: As at 4pm, voter turnout was 69.5 per cent with 6,301 voters having cast their ballots.
3.30pm: As at 3pm, 65 percent or 5,892 voters have cast their ballots. Polling ends at 5pm. The EC’s target of an 80 percent turnout appears unlikely.
2.25pm: As at 2pm, the turnout is 59.2 percent with 5,371 voters having cast their ballots. Voting ends at 5pm.
1.38pm: As at 1pm, turnout rate is 54.1 percent, or 4,905 voters.
1.12pm: As a result of the massive traffic jams along the narrow roads in Bagan Pinang, Minister of Rural and Regional Development and Umno vice-president Shafie Apdal has decided to ride pillion on a motorbike in his visit to the polling stations (right).
12.24pm: As at noon – after four hours of voting – the total turnout is 4,220, or 46.5 percent, from the eight polling stations.
12.05pm: Several supporters from both parties were reportedly arrested following the fracas outside SK Teluk Kemang, where bottles and stones went flying.
11.35am: A commotion erupted at the SK Teluk Kemang polling station earlier where supporters pelted each other with bottles and stones.
According to a local Puteri Umno leader, the situation is now under control as a large number of policemen, including members of the Federal Reserve Unit, have been deployed. However, she said supporters of both parties continue to hurl insults at each other.
11.30am: As at 11 am, the voter turnout for the Bagan Pinang by-election was recorded at 35.7 percent.
11.15am A motorcycle convoy involving more than 20 youths with MIC flags have gathered at the SK Panglima Adnan polling centre. Meanwhile, Umno Youth members take swipes at PAS by ridiculing its ‘takbir‘ (call to praise God) as ‘take beer’. They also called the Islamic party as ‘Parti Arak SeMalaysia’.
11.05am Isa Samad leaves Bradwall estate after visiting the polling station at a Tamil school where PAS supporters taunted him with chants of ‘rasuah‘ (bribery). The former MB also told Indian voters, ‘Jangan lupa dacing‘ (Don’t forget the scales as in BN’s logo). Isa also said that his chances of a victory are good.
10. 40am: EC chief Abdul Aziz Mohd Yusoff says the voting process is taking place smoothly except for some minor issues like voters brandishing party logos. He is also happy with the voter turnout, and hopes that at least 80 percdent will cast their ballots before voting ends at 5pm.
Aziz said that he also informed PAS candidate Zulkefly that apart from the candidates, other members cannot enter the polling stations. “You cannot even bring in your wife.”
The EC chief also noted an ‘improvement’ where supporters of both parties have gathered far apart from each other.
10.25am: As at 10am, the voter turnout for the by-election stood at 23.9 percent, or 2,168 voters.
10.15am: Isa Samad arrives at Ladang Siliau, walks about 150 metres from the main road to the polling centre. PAS supporters at the scene start shouting comments alluding to Isa’s money politics conviction by Umno.
10.10am: The situation at the SK Panglima Adnan nomination centre in Kampung Bagan is boisterous with supporters from BN and PAS trading insults.
About 5,000 people have gathered here now. Some Pemuda Umno supporters were seen throwing mineral water bottles across the road where PAS supporters are gathered.
10am: BN candidate Isa Samad is expected to arrive at the SRJK (T) Ladang Siliau nomination centre, causing excitement to the crowd which had gathered at the main road. A small truck of police light strike unit has been deployed here. A police helicopter is also hovering above.
9.35am: There is a standoff between PAS supporters and Negri Sembilan police chief Osman Sabtu on the latter’s instruction for all campaign material to be removed.
PAS’ lawyer Abdullah Abdul Karim argued the party members were not flouting the EC laws as these materials were worn or placed outside the 50-metre distance from the polling centres.
The EC laws prohibit campaigning within 50 metres from the polling centres.
9.30am: PAS candidate Zulkefly visited the SK Panglima Adnan nomination centre in Kampung Bagan. He was accompanied by some PAS supporters. He said he was confident of winning and urged voters to come out to vote.
9.30am: The rain has stopped at Teluk Kumang.
9.15am: It has started raining again, especially in Teluk Kumang and in Sua Betong where voters and shelters are forced to run for shelter.
Earlier report as at 9am
A moody weather and a heavy downpour kicked off the Bagan Pinang by-election in Port Dickson, Negri Sembilan this morning. Voting started at 8am and will end at 5pm.
The rain had however stopped as soon as voting started and the weather soon turned bright at most places in this holiday town. A slight drizzle was reported in other parts.
A total of 9,060 voters are eligible to vote for the state seat by-election. Some 4,604 postal voters have cast their votes on Thursday and Friday. The total voters here stand at 13,664.
Eight polling centres with 18 polling streams opened at 8am today to allow the voters to elect their representative.The eight voting channels are Taman Eastern, Ladang Atherton, Siliau, Ladang Bradwall, Sua Betong, Kg Bagan Pinang, Si Rusa and Teluk Kemang.
The Bagan Pinang by-election is a straight fight between Isa Samad of the Barisan Nasional and Zulkefly Omar of PAS.
The by-election has been necessitated by the death of state assemblyperson, Azman Mohd Noor of the BN, on Sept 4.
Among the first to cast his vote this morning was 70-year-old Kaw Yoh See who was not shy about sharing information on his allegiance.
“I have been supporting BN since I was young,” he said, adding that the Chinese community had received many election goodies.
He added that Isa was a good candidate for Chinese community.
Last-minute campaigning stopped
Meanwhile, supporters from both BN and Pakatan have also been seen waiting by the polling centres to lure last-minute support for their candidates.
At certain centres, the opposing supporters traded insults and barbs but the situation remained cordial.
The police, after keeping watch on these supporters for awhile, have asked them to stop canvassing.
The supporters were also asked to remove their vests and party badges.
This was in line with the new EC ruling which barred parties from canvassing near the polling centres.
Negri Sembilan police chief Osman Sabtu told the respective party supporters that they were not allowed to campaign after midnight yesterday.
These supporters were also asked to remove all campaign materials such as T-shirts, umbrellas and handheld fans with party logos.
Result by 8pm
Election Commission chairperson Abdul Aziz Mohd Yusof had said the result will be known as early as 8pm tonight.
“If all goes well, we should be able to know the result between 7.15pm and 7.30pm.
“But it is better we announce it after the Maghrib (evening) prayers at 8pm when the supporters of both parties will be present,” he told reporters after visiting polling centres in Ladang Sua Betong yesterday.
On the weather front, rain is expected to fall throughout the day and voters are urged to come to vote early. Voting will be closed at 5pm.
The police have also set up roadblocks in certain areas since early morning.
As it stands, the former menteri besar Isa appears to be the favourite to retain this seat for the BN and put an end to a series of by-electoral defeats for the federal ruling coalition in the hands of Pakatan Rakyat.
This is the ninth by-election in the country after the March 8, 2008 general election.
Bagan Pinang seat is a traditional BN stronghold. Malays form the majority of the voters with 62.8 percent followed by the Indians (20.7 percent), Chinese (11 percent) and others (5.5 percent).
In 2008, first-term assemblyperson Azman won the seat against PAS’ Ramli Ismail with a 2,333 vote majority. He garnered 6,430 votes while PAS had 4,097. Of the postal votes, 3,080 went to BN while PAS got 1,189.
In 2004, BN won this seat with a 4,411-vote majority when its candidate Mohd Faizal Ramli defeated PAS’ Hassan Ismail.
Isa, a menteri besar from 1982-2004, was a former six-term elected representative while state PAS chief Zulkefly had contested the Lenggeng state seat on three occasions without any success.
Both the candidates will not be voting today as they are registered as voters elsewhere.
For the record Isa was Linggi assemblyperson for five terms and Jempol MP for one.
Update Bagan Pinang: 3:41 pm
60% pengundi telah keluar.
Menurut beberapa sumber maklumat, khemah-khemah BN telah dibuka awal.
Adakah Menteri-menteri juuga sudah balik dan bungkus?
Tetapi sebahagian tempat mengundi dikira sunyi. Pengundi-pengundi Cina kelihatan baru keluar tadi.
Info terkini, PakatanRakyat sudah mendahului 20%.
Bagan Pinang By Election: Current Status
Setakat ini 23% pengundi telah keluar.
Kawasan-kawasan hangat di ladang-ladang…
Bagaimana boleh bendera Umno dityayang-tayang di hari mengundi? Bendera Umno tidak didaftar dengan SPR; hanya BN. Tetapi, bendera PAS, KEADILAN DAN DAP memang rasmi didaftar.
55% : 45% to Pakatan Rakyat Candidate?
Maklumat terkini memberi kelebihan undi kepada calon Pakatan Rakyat. Walaupun begitu dalam mengharungi suatu sistem yang berat sebelah – tidak memberi keadilan sama-rata kepada kedua-dua calon yang bertanding dalam pilihan raya kecil Bagan Pinang -berbagai penyelewengan dalam sistem yang dikendalikan oleh SPR boleh berlaku, seperti di masa lampau.
BN pimpinan Najib Razak tak de idea kreatif positif…selalu suka mengelirukan rakyat
October 8, 2009
Pakatan Rakyat Malaysia in Sarawak – You must be joking!
By Sim Kwang Yang
So Gabriel Adit and some other like-minded people are going to form a new party called Pakatan Rakyat Malaysia (PRM) in Sarawak. Dr. John Brian Anthony even claimed on his blog Dayak Baru that the new party had been registered with the Registrar of Societies a few days ago.
I know Gabriel personally. A long time ago, I used to drink in the same pub in Kuching with him, sometimes every afternoon. It is hard for me to bad-mouth him, though Internet commentators are beginning to bad-mouth him already.
Some fair comments on this latest development are still apt and possible.
First of all, it is very difficult to form a new political party in Malaysia, and Sarawak is no exception.
Years ago, I was hired to make an application to register a new political party in Sarawak. I did all the paper work, and was invited to meet the then Deputy Home Minister, at the time when Dr. M was the Home Minister in charge of the Registrar of Societies.
The Deputy Minister told me that only the PM had the power to approve application for the registration of new political parties and new newspapers, so I had to wait. Soon, word reached me that the PM Dr. M had rejected the application submitted by me, because of the objection of the Sarawak CM Taib Mahmud.
I wonder if they do things differently nowadays, but I doubt it. For a new political party to be formed in Sarawak, the PM surely has to be consulted, and in the true spirit of mutual back-scratching in the Barisan Nasional, the PM would surely consult the Sarawak CM.
Therefore, for the new PRM to be registered, surely its registration would have received the blessing of the CM Taib Mahmud – for obvious reasons.
Too many instant politicians
Am I unhappy with Gabriel Adit for leaving PKR for the new PRM? Not one bit! In fact, when he joined PKR amidst much fanfare last year, I was worried for the PKR. He has too much political and financial baggage, and he could become a huge liability for the Sarawak PKR. Now that he has decided to leave PKR and go form the PRM, PKR is one toxic asset less.
That is why I disagree with Anwar Ibrahim’s method of recruiting instant politicians who had been with the BN. Their political baggage is simply too tainted for comfort. It is far better to recruit new people, young and old, from the untainted masses of middle class Sarawakians, like the retired police or army officers, former civil servants, and even new graduates.
Apart from the opposition DAP, PKR, and PAS, political parties in Sarawak depend on very strong financial backers to survive. There is the huge cost needed in running a party structure, to pay administrative personnel and the office rental, and to fund the election war chest.
In the old days, party funding was one of the main fuses that caused the SNAP to split up in two. Party funding also became a contentious issue with PBDS, to the extent that you could say money is the cause of all political evil in Sarawak.
Who is bank-rolling PRM?
The question is: who is funding this new PRM party?
There is widespread speculation that Tiong King Sing is the money man behind the new party. He has not denied it or sued anybody for saying so. He could very well be. He is already bank-rolling the SPDP, and with his immense wealth, even after his money in Kuala Dimensi has been frozen by the police, he can easily support another party. It is just a matter of mere millions to him – just like a few dollars to you and me.
Still others have speculated that the financial backer could be Sng Chee Hua, looking for a party for his son Larry.
The launch of this new party in Sarawak is good news for those over-the-hill politicians who are trying to make a comeback one way or another. They have also smelled the money.
They do not have to go and work on the ground with the rakyat during non-election time. All they have to do is to wait for a general election to come, and hope that election funds in huge bundles will fall from the sky. Then, they have a shot at being YBs and become rich. Believe me! I have met my fair share of these professional political money-makers.
Prospects for Sarawak elections
Will this new political party bring anything good to the people of Sarawak?
I doubt it. There are more than enough political parties in the Land of the Hornbill. One more Dayak-led party is going to detract from Dayak support for the PKR, and help PBB in the divide-and-rule tactic to weaken the Dayaks’ political strength.
When I was in Kuching recently, I was asked by a reporter what I think of the next general election, at both the federal and state levels.
Frankly, I don’t see how the Pakatan Rakyat can take the state government in Sarawak next round, certainly not with DAP, PKR, and PAS squabbling over seat allocations, and definitely not with Taib Mahmud still firmly at the BN helm. They would find it hard even to recruit all the 71 willing, capable, and credible candidates for all the state seats.
It is better for them to concentrate on grabbing 10 parliamentary seats in both Sabah and Sarawak to tip the scale in Kuala Lumpur, and even that seems impossible now.
As for the new party PRM, there is no need to get excited about this latest kid on the block. The kid will probably fizzle out after the next round of general elections, like the STAR party.
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Other News:
“The condition does not apply to political parties as they enjoy a national status. Only state-level organisation aspiring to become a national entity needs to have seven members from the states,” he said when contacted by Bernama.
He was commenting on a call by the Election Commission (EC) that opposition parties register Pakatan Rakyat as a legal entity like Barisan Nasional to enable them to campaign as a coalition and put up their parties’ flags.
Md Alias brushed aside a claim by the opposition that ROS’ conditions were rigid and as such it was difficult to formalise the alliance.
“There are normal conditions, which should be adhered to, such as they must have a constitution like that of BN.
“This is not a big issue and until today, we have not received any applications from them,” he said.
The opposition is made up of PKR, DAP and PAS.
- Bernama
Sime Darby Bhd component party of BN, too?
October 08, 2009 19:59 PM
Estate Workers In Bagan Pinang To Get Better Facilities
By: Ramjit
PORT DICKSON, Oct 8 (Bernama) — Sime Darby Berhad will continue to provide tarred roads and better facilities in four estates here, said Human Resources Minister Datuk Dr S.Subramaniam.
He said existing facilities in the four estates – the Salak (Atherton), Sua Betong, Siliau and Bradwall estates – would also be repaired.
“The company gave the assurance in a meeting with me on Monday. It had also agreed to provide a reasonable salary,” he told reporters after visiting the Sua Betong Estate here Thursday.
He said the company would build a new community hall and another hall for the Maha Mariamman temple in the Salak Estate.
“Sime Darby will also solve flooding in a low-lying area in the Sua Betong Estate while the drains in the Hindu and Christian cemeteries there will be repaired.
He said the company would provide a photostat machine and a fax machine for a Tamil school in the Siliau Estate.
Subramaniam said Sime Darby had tarred a road along shophouses in the Bradwall Estate and a road leading to a temple in the Sua Betong Estate, and built community halls in all estates and a badminton court in the Sua Betong Estate.
Subramaniam said he had proposed to Sime Darby to set up the Estate Workers Housing Aid Fund to help workers own houses when they retire like that of Felda settlers.
“Under the scheme, employers’ contribution can be kept for the workers, who will be entitled to withdraw the money when they meet the requirements like after working for 10 years at the estate.
“They can use the money to pay the deposit for a house,” he said.
On estate workers salary, he said in a survey conducted by the Labour Department showed that estate workers in Port Dickson earned between RM600 and RM1,200 monthly in the past four months.
– BERNAMA
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Other News:
October 8, 2009
Pakatan Rakyat Malaysia in Sarawak – You must be joking!
By Sim Kwang Yang
So Gabriel Adit and some other like-minded people are going to form a new party called Pakatan Rakyat Malaysia (PRM) in Sarawak. Dr. John Brian Anthony even claimed on his blog Dayak Baru that the new party had been registered with the Registrar of Societies a few days ago.
I know Gabriel personally. A long time ago, I used to drink in the same pub in Kuching with him, sometimes every afternoon. It is hard for me to bad-mouth him, though Internet commentators are beginning to bad-mouth him already.
Some fair comments on this latest development are still apt and possible.
First of all, it is very difficult to form a new political party in Malaysia, and Sarawak is no exception.
Years ago, I was hired to make an application to register a new political party in Sarawak. I did all the paper work, and was invited to meet the then Deputy Home Minister, at the time when Dr. M was the Home Minister in charge of the Registrar of Societies.
The Deputy Minister told me that only the PM had the power to approve application for the registration of new political parties and new newspapers, so I had to wait. Soon, word reached me that the PM Dr. M had rejected the application submitted by me, because of the objection of the Sarawak CM Taib Mahmud.
I wonder if they do things differently nowadays, but I doubt it. For a new political party to be formed in Sarawak, the PM surely has to be consulted, and in the true spirit of mutual back-scratching in the Barisan Nasional, the PM would surely consult the Sarawak CM.
Therefore, for the new PRM to be registered, surely its registration would have received the blessing of the CM Taib Mahmud – for obvious reasons.
Too many instant politicians
Am I unhappy with Gabriel Adit for leaving PKR for the new PRM? Not one bit! In fact, when he joined PKR amidst much fanfare last year, I was worried for the PKR. He has too much political and financial baggage, and he could become a huge liability for the Sarawak PKR. Now that he has decided to leave PKR and go form the PRM, PKR is one toxic asset less.
That is why I disagree with Anwar Ibrahim’s method of recruiting instant politicians who had been with the BN. Their political baggage is simply too tainted for comfort. It is far better to recruit new people, young and old, from the untainted masses of middle class Sarawakians, like the retired police or army officers, former civil servants, and even new graduates.
Apart from the opposition DAP, PKR, and PAS, political parties in Sarawak depend on very strong financial backers to survive. There is the huge cost needed in running a party structure, to pay administrative personnel and the office rental, and to fund the election war chest.
In the old days, party funding was one of the main fuses that caused the SNAP to split up in two. Party funding also became a contentious issue with PBDS, to the extent that you could say money is the cause of all political evil in Sarawak.
Who is bank-rolling PRM?
The question is: who is funding this new PRM party?
There is widespread speculation that Tiong King Sing is the money man behind the new party. He has not denied it or sued anybody for saying so. He could very well be. He is already bank-rolling the SPDP, and with his immense wealth, even after his money in Kuala Dimensi has been frozen by the police, he can easily support another party. It is just a matter of mere millions to him – just like a few dollars to you and me.
Still others have speculated that the financial backer could be Sng Chee Hua, looking for a party for his son Larry.
The launch of this new party in Sarawak is good news for those over-the-hill politicians who are trying to make a comeback one way or another. They have also smelled the money.
They do not have to go and work on the ground with the rakyat during non-election time. All they have to do is to wait for a general election to come, and hope that election funds in huge bundles will fall from the sky. Then, they have a shot at being YBs and become rich. Believe me! I have met my fair share of these professional political money-makers.
Prospects for Sarawak elections
Will this new political party bring anything good to the people of Sarawak?
I doubt it. There are more than enough political parties in the Land of the Hornbill. One more Dayak-led party is going to detract from Dayak support for the PKR, and help PBB in the divide-and-rule tactic to weaken the Dayaks’ political strength.
When I was in Kuching recently, I was asked by a reporter what I think of the next general election, at both the federal and state levels.
Frankly, I don’t see how the Pakatan Rakyat can take the state government in Sarawak next round, certainly not with DAP, PKR, and PAS squabbling over seat allocations, and definitely not with Taib Mahmud still firmly at the BN helm. They would find it hard even to recruit all the 71 willing, capable, and credible candidates for all the state seats.
It is better for them to concentrate on grabbing 10 parliamentary seats in both Sabah and Sarawak to tip the scale in Kuala Lumpur, and even that seems impossible now.
As for the new party PRM, there is no need to get excited about this latest kid on the block. The kid will probably fizzle out after the next round of general elections, like the STAR party.
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