BN to step up charm offensive, snap polls near

The Barisan Nasional (BN) supreme council meeting today decided to beef up its charm offensive, the strongest sign yet that the 13th general election is near.

BN chairman and Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak said following BN's fresh victories at the Batu Sapi and Galas by-elections, the coalition was confident that the voters were returning to the BN fold.

"We feel that the victories meant voters are coming back to us," he told a press conference after chairing the BN supreme council meeting here.

BN won both by-elections with strong majorities. There were also signs that Chinese votes, the country's second largest, the majority of which went to the opposition in the last general election, had returned to the BN.

There were also indications of a big shift in sentiments among the younger voters in the two by-elections.

The popular perception that the youths are anti-establishment was proven wrong when polling data showed that the majority of them had backed the ruling coalition.

Najib said the coalition's top leaders decided today that they would not be complacent and would continue to build on the victories.

BN will increase programmes to woo voters while the federal government will continue to introduce "people-friendly" policies in a continuation of its reform efforts.

"We have decided to make positive transformation to enhance the trust of voters towards BN and will be based on the 1Malaysia tagline,” Najib said.

This includes portraying a united front, he added.

No more infighting

The ruling coalition, made of race-based component parties, has been plagued by internal squabbling on issues along racial lines in its attempts to win support from its respective communities.

"Our internal fighting must be contained. We want to portray a coalition in unity and not one of fighting among its members.

"We will strive to achieve a zero-internal problem BN," Najib said.

With the unveiling of the Government Transformation Plan, Economic Transformation Programme and the introduction of the key performing indicator system under the National Key Result Areas and National Key Economic Areas, the Najib administration has seen its approval ratings increased.

While the government has its fair share of criticisms, pro-BN analysts believe Najib's reform initiatives have shored up support.

This will bolster Najib's confidence to hold early elections as his government aims to get a fresh mandate to implement much-needed reforms amid plummeting confidence and investments in the economy.

Najib's plan to spur growth by opening up the economy has been stalled in the face of fierce resistance from conservatives within Umno.

Calling for early elections will help Najib carry on with his unpopular plan to dismantle the hefty subsidy regime, one of the major factors contributing to Malaysia's record 7% budget deficit. - FMT