BY-ELECTION

By

Dr. Mahathir Mohamad

1. I went to Bukit Gantang and Bukit Selambau to campaign for Barisan Nasional. We lost in both places; lost with bigger margins.

2. The papers reported that an independent post mortem will be conducted. I hope the people doing this will question me also.

3. In case they won't, can I give my opinion via this blog. There were lots of banners and posters in Bukit Gantang. A lot of them showed the portraits of the candidate. But quite a lot showed the picture of the Menteri Besar.

4. There is a belief in some UMNO quarters that if pictures of the politicians are displayed everywhere, people are going to like and support them. So, huge billboards have been put up with huge portraits of the Ministers and Menteri Besar/Chief Minister. To show that the Ministers are close to the Prime Minister, the portraits of the PM are shown close to the Minister concerned. In particular the (then) Tourism Minister together with the Prime Minister are seen everywhere. Maybe this is a tourist attraction.

5. Along Jalan Syed Putra there is a huge portrait of the 5th Prime Minister.

6. People are going to say that it was the same when I was PM. If you care to check you will find that only the Menteri Besar had these billboards with their portraits and mine. Ministers did not in those days. Certainly there were no big portraits of me. In fact the first thing I did when appointed PM was to forbid pictures of me to be displayed even in offices. But they nevertheless put up my pictures.

7. I really don't think having huge portraits of politicians will make them popular. In fact it is likely to make them very unpopular.

8. Another practice which should be looked at is that of Barisan Nasional State Governments, Government parties as well as Ministers like taking full page advertisements in the papers to congratulate the Prime Minister on his appointment and on other occassions.

9. I can understand the private sector doing this but Ministers and Ministries should not be wasting public money doing this especially before the Cabinet is named.

10. I have lots of observations on the conduct of the two by-elections. But I will reserve them for the future.

Run-Up to K. Terengganu by-election BN highlights positive future, people projects

By : Rosli Zakaria


Datuk Ahmad Said says the opposition has not made good on polls promises

KUALA TERENGGANU: The Barisan Nasional is banking on its track record as a government capable of helping the people in its campaign to retain the Kuala Terengganu parliamentary seat.

At public events, its leaders have been busy talking about various projects aimed at sharing the state's wealth with the people with the primary objective of eradicating poverty, providing better education and creating economic opportunities.

"Matters close to the people's heart and often raised by the opposition, relating to poverty, education and economic opportunities, will be highlighted and explained.

"Political rhetoric will take a back seat," said Datuk Ahmad Said, menteri besar and state BN chief.

"We want the people to look at the future in a positive light.
"We want them to see what the BN government has done and what more we can do for the people and the state.

"We want them to vote BN for continuity."

Ahmad said the opposition had its opportunity to institute changes in Perak, Selangor, Kedah and Penang, but since the general election, the people there are still waiting for their promises to be fulfilled.

"If they (the opposition) cannot deliver on promises made during the general election, what makes you think they can deliver on promises made in a by-election?

"PKR (Parti Keadilan Rakyat) hoodwinked the people by talking about taking over the ruling government on Sept 16.

"Pas, on the other hand, has shown its true colours. Its coalition with PKR and DAP was just a marriage of convenience. When it raised the hudud issue, it created anxiety among its partners.

"We try to avoid talking about the opposition because we know they are self-destructive.

"We will, instead, just concentrate on our strengths and overcome whatever weaknesses we may have."

On the ground, he said the spirit of BN party workers was high and state party leaders, as well as BN candidate Datuk Wan Ahmad Farid, had been going on their rounds to tackle problems and issues head-on.

The BN, Ahmad said, had been explaining the rationale behind most of the people-centric projects initiated by the government, for example in education where it is committed to making all its citizens literate in information technology.

The fact that by next April, 25,000 pupils in Year Five will each be getting a laptop computer had been well received by the public who saw the initiative as an evolution in education.

Similarly, the promise of replacing the zinc roofs of houses of poor families with asbestos and giving four hectares of land to anyone who wanted to grow padi bodes well with the people.

"We have records to prove our success and we will be banking on it to get the votes." he added.

Abdullah Confident Of BN's Victory In Kuala Terengganu By-election

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 9 (Bernama) -- Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi is confident that Barisan Nasional will retain the Kuala Terengganu parliamentary seat in the by-election on Jan 17.

"We want to win, we want to win, we want to win. That is my comment," he told reporters after chairing the Barisan Nasional Supreme Council meeting here, Tuesday.

Asked why he was so confident of winning, Abdullah replied: "There must be some confidence, if not how we're going to say we want to win,".

Abdullah said among the reasons why he was confident of victory were because the seat belonged to the BN previously and the ruling coalition had strong support.

However, he said, BN must work hard to retain the seat.

The BN chairman also rejected the assumption that there would be a big swing by the voters.

"Not at the moment. You don't know how the people swing. They had the habit to swing even last minute for us or somebody else," he said.

Abdullah said Umno would nominate its candidate for the BN in the by-election very soon.

The BN also discussed who would be helping in the campaign for the Kuala Terengganu by-election.

The by-election was being held following the death of the Deputy Minister of Education, Datuk Razali Ismail, at the Institut Aminuddin Baki, Genting Highlands on Nov 28.

The Election Commission has fixed Jan 6 for nomination day while polling has been set for Jan 17.

-- BERNAMA

PAS Candidate To Contest In K. Terengganu By-Election

PENANTI, Dec 9 (Bernama) -- Opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said Tuesday Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) and the DAP will their give full support to any PAS candidate in the Kuala Terengganu parliamentary by-election on Jan 17.

Anwar, who is also PKR advisor, said Kuala Terengganu would not be a safe seat for any party and the Pakatan Rakyat would be out in full force to fight for the seat.

"PKR and DAP have decided to give full commitment to the PAS candidate, whether he is the experienced Mohammad Sabu or others, to contest in Kuala Terengganu," he told reporters after celebrating his wife Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail's 56th birthday at Yayasan Aman here.

He said Pakatan Rakyat was confident of winning the seat which fell vacant after the incumbent, Datuk Razali Ismail, who is also the Deputy Education Minister, died of a heart attack while playing badminton on Nov 28.

In the March 8 polls this year, Razali won by a slim 628-vote majority, defeating PAS heavyweight Mat Sabu and 89-year-old independent candidatelead by Maimun Yusuf. Polling is on Jan 17 and nomination on Jan 6.

The Permatang Pauh MP also called on the federal government to set up an independent panel of experts to look into the causes of the 1993 Highland Towers collapse and the landslide in Bukit Antarabangsa on Saturday.

-- BERNAMA

Anwar sex charge casts long shadow over by-election

(AP) - An opinion poll by the independent Merdeka Centre this month found that 66 per cent of respondents thought the latest accusation was politically motivated. Only 31 per cent trusted the police to handle the case fairly.

In headlines, on TV news and around dinner tables, the talk has turned lurid in Malaysia these days.

The country of 27 million people is transfixed by a drama whose second act unfolded in June when the top opposition leader, 61-year-old Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, was accused of having sex with a 23-year-old male aide. It sounded very much like a case from 10 years ago, when he was imprisoned on a similar charge involving his driver.

Anwar says both allegations were trumped up — the latest because he is running for Parliament in a by-election on Aug 26 that he believes will be his springboard to the premiership and the downfall of the long-ruling Barisan Nasional coalition of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

In the 1990s, as deputy prime minister, Anwar was hailed as a rising star of Asian politics. Advocating liberal, pluralist values in a country where race and Islam are paramount, he was a sharp contrast to his then boss, Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, who was famous for his anti-Semitism-tinged attacks on the West.

Then, in 1998, the married father of six was charged with sodomy and abuse of power and sentenced to 15 years in jail. He was freed in 2004 after the conviction was overturned on a technicality.

Now comes the charge that on June 26 he had sex with the aide, Saiful Bukhari Azlan, in a Kuala Lumpur apartment.

Anwar denies this charge as strenuously as he did the 1998 one. “Give me a break. I've gone through hell already,” he told reporters. “... I'm convinced ultimately I'll be vindicated.”

The latest accusation is unlikely to hurt him, analysts say. They worry, though, about the aftermath.

If Anwar loses, his supporters will assume the elections were rigged and may take to the streets. Even if he wins, he could still be convicted of sodomy, which in Malaysia is punishable by up to 20 years in prison.

"It will be a landmark by-election. It will be a deciding factor for Anwar," said political analyst Denison Jayasooriya.

On Saturday, tens of thousands of cheering supporters escorted Anwar to the nomination centre where he formally registered for the election in the northern state of Penang.

"I am touched by the overwhelming support. It is no longer just a by-election. It is a lot more than that," said Anwar.

Anwar faces a relative lightweight from the ruling party, and the Pakatan Rakyat coalition he leads is already on a high. It made unprecedented gains in the March general election against Abdullah's BN coalition, which has ruled the former British colony since it became independent in 1957.

The BN retained a majority of 140 seats in the 222-seat parliament, but the Pakatan Rakyat soared from 19 seats to 82 and won control of five of Malaysia's 13 states.

Anwar promises clean government and free-market reforms. Although he belongs to the country's 60-per cent Malay Muslim majority, he promises to end a policy that gives the Malays preference in politics, government jobs and university admissions.

"It is a historic moment for Malaysians, especially the silent majority, to convey how they want the nation to move ahead," analyst Jayasooriya said.

An opinion poll by the independent Merdeka Centre this month found that 66 per cent of respondents thought the latest accusation was politically motivated. Only 31 per cent trusted the police to handle the case fairly.

Websites, newspapers and even the government-controlled mainstream media have reported sordid minutiae of the case. Businessmen complain that it has become an embarrassment in their dealings with foreign customers.

On Friday, the aide spoke for the first time and claimed Anwar had raped him. The police had previously said the sex was consensual, but that Saiful was a key witness and would not be prosecuted.

"It happened by force, without my consent," he said at a news conference.

"This was the first time I was sodomised." Government-controlled TV channels aired a video of Saiful in the mosque asking God to curse him if he is lying.

Sivarasa Rasiah, a lawyer for Anwar, retorted: "His story is a fabrication."

Media have published a report by a private doctor who examined the aide and found no evidence of sodomy. Police registered a case against Anwar after the aide underwent a second examination at a government hospital. The results of that examination have not been released.

The first doctor has since gone underground, leading to speculation that he may have been forced to leave the country.

The government is firm in portraying Saiful, the young aide, as the victim.

In an interview last month with The Associated Press, Prime Minister Abdullah denied any conspiracy.

The aide "needs justice," Abdullah said. "That is what he is crying for. We cannot ignore that." — AP