EVERYBODY IS FED UP OF NAJIB, THEY ARE ALL WAITING TO VOTE HIM OUT: IN ITS DEATH THROES, BN SHOULD TAKE NOTE OF ANGRY VOTERS

THE first time Mohd Zaki Kassim voted against Barisan Nasional was in 1999 after the sacking and jailing of then deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim.

“I was very angry with Dr Mahathir Mohamad for what he did to Anwar,” said the 67-year-old retiree who struggled to explain why he has reconciled his hatred for Dr Mahathir now.

“I think it’s because I can see him making a real effort to correct his wrongs at 92 years old,” said the former PAS member who lives in the Kuala Lumpur suburb of Taman Tun Dr Ismail.

After the 1999 elections, Zaki continued to vote for the opposition in his constituency, Segambut. This federal seat was held by BN’s Tan Kee Kwong (who later joined PKR) from 1995-2008 before DAP’s Lim Lip Eng won the seat in 2008.

“After 1999, it became a habit to vote against BN because I was still angry with the government… 2004 less but 2008 and 2013 more because of corruption issues,”  said Zaki, pointing to the collapse of the Terengganu Stadium roof in 2013.

No action was taken against the individuals then, he said.

Come the elections this year, the former Urban Development Authority officer said his anger against the government has only worsened.

The goods and services tax, higher cost of living, weekly petrol price increases and the scandals plaguing Felda and 1Malaysia Development Bhd has only made the Manchester United fan and now Amanah member more resentful of the present government.

More reasons to be outraged  

There are more reasons for voters to be angry with the government these elections compared with GE13, said Universiti Malaya’s Prof Dr Awang Azman Awang Pawi.

“GST, higher prices, integrity issues, China investments, unfulfilled GE13 promises plus the sacking of Muhyiddin Yassin and Mukhriz Mahathir are some of the additional reasons that have angered voters this time.”

Awang Azman, who is from Sarawak, said the groups most affected by this are the B40 (household income less than RM3,860) and young working adults.

“Although there’s BR1M for B40, it’s like giving Panadol to a patient with a critical illness. While some are grateful to receive the aid, more believe that the government should be doing better.  

“The youth, meanwhile, are upset that they can’t get jobs suitable to their qualifications.

“And a third group of voters that will be angry are the M40 (RM3,860-RM8,319) who can’t get BR1M or PR1MA housing but have to live in the city and are saddled with car and housing loans and higher living costs,” said Awang Azman.

To Amanah deputy president Salahuddin Ayub, the anger is more palpable among older voters and Umno grassroots in Johor.

“The Umno members tell me they are fed up with the party while the older people are concerned with the higher cost of living. The topics they often raise are GST, 1MDB, Felda and corruption.

“Although the opposition has been explaining these issues over the years, it’s only beginning to hit them now as Pakatan Harapan has Dr Mahathir and Muhyiddin.”

But unlike 1999 when the anger against the government was visible in the form of street protests, Salahuddin said this time it was a “silent wave”.

“I can see strong undercurrents now as the invitations from Umno-linked groups for a chit chat are almost daily now. Very different from 2013,” said Salahuddin who contested but lost in Nusajaya at GE13.

Where is this anger directed?

In 1999, when Zaki voted against BN for the first time since becoming a voter in 1974, he blamed Dr Mahathir for what happened to Anwar.

“I hated him then,” said Zaki.

And although he was not as angry with Abdullah Ahmad Badawi in 2004, he still voted for the opposition.

This time, the anger against BN has been redirected at Prime Minister Najib Razak.

“All the problems we have today are caused by him. Petrol goes down two sen this week but it has already gone up 10 sen the previous week,” said Zaki.

Awang Azman, who lectures at UM’s Academy of Malay Studies, said although inflation and price fluctuations can be caused by international economics (for example, global oil prices), the government becomes a punching bag for voters.

“The voters will blame the government although prices are also higher in South Korea, Japan or the United States,” he added.

MCA publicity chief Ti Lian Ker said not all the anger is targeted at BN.

“This traditional voting theory is no longer applicable in GE14 due to the emergence of new breakaway parties, bitter divorce or voters’ paradigm shift.

“There is an emerging third force consisting of past Pakatan supporters who are now jaded and angry that Pakatan continues to shift the goal post and are not coming up with concrete alternative policies change or proposals,” said Ti.

The MCA central committee member said this is the reason for the emergence of the #UndiRosak campaign, the call not to vote or to spoil the vote as a protest.

“It has gained traction and is a sign that more learned voters are jaded and tired of the political games, drama and opera by the opposition on which they have placed their hopes.  

“Now these voters are standing up and breaking out of the opposition’s grip after realising that Pakatan is not serious about change and reform,” said the former Pahang lawmaker (1995-2008).

He said PKR benefited from the Hindraf movement in 2007 while DAP exploited the Chinese frustrations of a non-level playing field in business and scholarships during the 2008 and 2013 elections.

“They were also accentuated by PAS then, which gave them the push needed in mass protests. All these stopped when PAS broke away from DAP.”

The solution

For elections, cost-of-living issues can be mitigated by channelling funds towards people-oriented programmes and reinstalling certain subsidies, UM’s Awang Azman said.

“Subsidies for fuel and basic necessities should not be cut or reduced to show that the government cares. The GLCs (government-linked companies) can also be more proactive by offering more jobs.

“And lastly, the government should re-evaluate the GST on items that affect lower-income groups.”

On MCA, Ti said the party’s rebranding has worked and it will try to explain the differences between MCA and DAP to “detoxify the DAP poison against MCA”.

“We will explain to the voters the positive influences of MCA and the destructive politics of DAP.”

But for Zaki, nothing short of jailing certain leaders will pacify his anger.

“Had the government taken action against the prime minister for his wrongdoings last year I could’ve still changed my vote.

“It’s not everything, but it’s a start. But that didn’t happen and now it’s too late,” said Zaki, who had just returned from his zohor prayers at the local mosque.

– https://www.themalaysianinsight.com