Vote out pro-tycoons BN, Anwar tells poor

The opposition leader reminds the Malays that it is they who form the majority in the lower income bracket. 'Why are you still voting for BN?' he asks.

AMPANG: Class war has now become the central theme of Anwar Ibrahim’s election push as the opposition leader seeks to woo the “downtrodden” and reinforce Pakatan Rakyat’s “pro-people” credentials.

Speaking before some 2,000 supporters here last night, the former deputy prime minister pointed to several lopsided policies of the ruling coalition that only benefited their business allies and called on the “oppressed class” to rise against a government “keen only on enriching the rich.”

He said the 13th general election would be the best avenue for the poor to oust Barisan Nasional and install a government that would ensure more pro-people policies.

But the poor, he added, must be united and clear in their goals.

“It is us who are fighting for all the unjust policies, which are only benefiting the rich tycoons, to be abolished… why are you still voting for them?

“This battle, this election is about the masses, the workers, the low-income earners against the rich cronies of Umno. They must rise to fight,” he said.

Anwar made constant reference to the fact that the majority of those in the lower income group were the Malays but the community continued to put BN in power, voting along racial sentiments stoked by Umno through its media.

He cited Putrajaya’s “preference” to do business with Malay tycoons like Syed Mokhtar al-Bukhary, one of the country’s richest men, who had built his wealth on monopolies over key trades like sugar and rice.

‘Robbed’ by Malay businessmen
Anwar said Malay voters were still buoyed by the notion that some Malays were in control of certain facets of the economy without considering that these businessmen were “robbing” them with prices far above the market rate.

“Yes we shout long live the Malays. When we know some Malays control some businesses we shout long live the Malays. But under Syed Mokhtar, sugar prices are four times higher and you still support Umno,” added the former finance minister.

Anwar’s plea for the country’s majority electorate to vote against BN came in the wake of a survey indicating a 10% surge in Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak’s approval rating to 69% released by independent polling house Merdeka Centre.

The report showed that the increase in Najib’s popularity was mostly due to the RM500 cash handout to households with a monthly income of under RM3,000 under the Bantuan Rakyat 1Malaysia programme.

Widening income disparity amid a worsening economy witnessed a burgeoning of the country’s lower to lower middle income groups, the new kingmaker which had now become the target of intensified charm offensive by both sides of the political divide.

The opposition leader said voting Pakatan into Putrajaya would end the problems related to the economy.

He added that policies like minimum wage and higher subsidy for basic goods would help lift some of the burdens faced by the poor as they coped with inflationary pressure.