Jamal rallies troops, hands RM50 to 'workers'

GE14 | Sungai Besar Umno division head Jamal Md Yunos may not be an election candidate but he has been out on the hustings, armed with fiery speeches and a bag of money.

At the Malay Sungai Leman Bendang Utara village last night, Jamal accompanied BN's Sekinchan candidate Lee Yee Yuan, who introduced himself to about 100 people.

Lee left immediately after speaking, allowing Jamal to take over the rostrum where he urged those present to not be taken in by their opponents' call for change and be steadfast with BN like good soldiers.

"We are like soldiers who must ensure that this country continues to be ruled by BN and (our leader) Najib Abdul Razak.

"We must be strong soldiers. We must be a strong machinery so our enemies will not weaken our spirits," he said.

Following this, Jamal led the participants in rounds of "Hidup Barisan" chants. He then demanded a louder chant, to which the audience complied.

At this juncture, Jamal said, "Fifty ringgit. Get my bag." This resulted in the audience clapping wildly. Jamal then went around the tend to distribute RM50 to each listener.

Jamal told Malaysiakini later that he was paying party workers and that he was not buying votes.

"They are part of our machinery. They put up flags, buntings and other materials. As the leader here, I have to pay wages, not bribes," he said.

Malaysiakini was unable to independently verify Jamal's claims. Most of those present at the event were not in BN party colours and there were also children and elderly people present.

On Monday night, Jamal and his cohorts were spotted at the BN event for the Sekinchan Chinese folk, where participants were treated to a buffet, performances and a lucky draw with a grand prize of RM25,000 cash.

Sekinchan is one of two state constituencies that is part of the Sungai Besarparliamentary constituency. Over the past three elections, DAP has won Sekinchan with only a small majority.

In a related development today, Lee said in a statement that he was unaware of the source of funding for the event on Monday nor the event at Sungai Leman Bendang Utara last night.

"I was invited to the concert and I used the opportunity to introduce myself as a candidate for Sekinchan," he said.

Lee said he had left after speaking at both events and had no knowledge of what transpired afterwards.

"However, at a personal level, I am against vote buying. In fact, Jamal has never taught us (BN candidates) to campaign in such a way.

"Our opponents are trying to create controversy and indulging in cheap politics in matters that make no sense," he added. - Mkini