GE14 | Pakatan Harapan chairperson Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s campaign has come full circle as he returns to his home state of Kedah on Saturday.
Mahathir had started his campaign in Langkawi on nomination day last week. After a whirlwind tour all around Peninsular Malaysia, his return came amid concerns PAS was gaining groundin the state.
His schedule for the day started with a visit to pay respects to the grave of the late PAS president Fadzil Noor, and a speech to about 300 people in Kampung Bukit, Pokok Sena shortly after where he praised Fadzil as a wise and moderate leader.
But his grand finale for the day was no doubt the ceramah in Padang Sera, Jerlun, later that night.
Some 4,000 people had gathered here to listen to the speech despite the venue being so dimly lit that many attendees had to whip out the smartphones to light their way when on the move.
Organisers claimed that 10,000 people were present.
The crowd appeared to be engaged with Mahathir and the other speakers present.
They clapped and cheered at various high points in the speeches and remained fixated for the rest of the time.
Apparently impressed by the strong showing, Mahathir remarked: “I am impressed, surprised (hairan) that there are so many people in Jerlun.
"Jerlun doesn’t have a lot of people, but nowadays wherever we go, many people come to listen to Harapan’s speeches.”
Before continuing with his usual spiel riling against the caretaker prime minister Najib Abdul Razak and his administration, he said the crowd attending his previous speeches also appear to be engaged, as though they agree with what is being said and are prepared to support Harapan.
However, the campaign trail may have taken a toll on the former premier’s health, and he needed assistance to climb a small set of stairs to get off the stage.
His speech in Jerlun was interrupted at least six times as he either cleared his throat or to let out a chesty cough. He had been coughing during his speech in Pokok Sena earlier, and his speech in Malacca the day before too.
Kedah is a key battleground state in this election, and Bersatu is instrumental in chipping away Umno’s strongholds in the state’s rural Malay heartland.
However, a study released by Merdeka Centre on May 2 found that while both Harapan and PAS are gaining ground against BN in Kedah, PAS was doing so more rapidly than Harapan.
This bucks a trend seen in other states where PAS is the one that is found to be losing influence.
Jerlun is located in northern Kedah, with the Perlis border to the north and Mahathir’s former constituency of Kubang Pasu to the east.
Farming - especially that of rubber and paddy - is a major economic activity in the area, where 91 percent of the electorate are Malays.
Mahathir’s son, the Kedah Harapan chief Mukhriz Mahathir is contesting to be the local MP. He was also the MP here under the Umno ticket from 2008 to 2013.
He is now challenging the incumbent and his former colleague Othman Aziz for the seat, which the latter won in the 2013 general election with a 3,270-vote majority. Also in the fray is PAS’ Abd Ghani Ahmad. -Mkini
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