BN won Teluk Intan as I warned gangs to stay out of polls, says Zahid Hamidi

Even by his usual outlandish statements, Malaysia's home minister has outdone himself yet again, attributing Barisan Nasional's (BN) victory in Teluk Intan to the warning he gave underworld operators.

Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s comments suggested that gangsters were running free in the country and had been influencing elections, raising questions on what security agencies under his purview had been doing all along.

The home minister said that because of the warning he personally issued during the campaign in the run up to the May 31 by-election, the gangs did not dare intimidate voters to vote the opposition.

"They (the gangs) expected a majority, from 12,000, down to 6,000, and down to 2,000. Alhamdulillah we got a 238 majority.

"I warned them because I know each of their faces, and what they were doing.

"Because of my warning, they did not dare carry out any of their threats and warnings to the voters in Teluk Intan," Zahid (pic) said.

However, he did not reject the possibility that gangs may have been some involved in the previous by-elections.

"Maybe that was what they did all along. I have evidence of these gangs operating in Teluk Intan, Ipoh and Penang," Zahid said in response to a question by PAS MP for Pokok Sena Datuk Mahfuz Omar.

BN candidate Datuk Mah Siew Keong won the Teluk Intan seat with a majority of 238 votes over the DAP candidate Dyana Sofya Mohd Daud.

MORE TO COME

- TMI