PETALING JAYA: Dr Mahathir Mohamad will not be going to Rantau to help Pakatan Harapan in last-minute campaigning ahead of polling day tomorrow.
It is learnt that the PH chairman, who had made appearances during the Port Dickson, Cameron Highlands and Semenyih by-elections, would not be able to do so in Rantau, where PKR’s Dr S Streram is up against Umno heavyweight Mohamad Hasan.
A source told FMT that the prime minister’s schedule was packed.
Mahathir had also missed the Seri Setia, Balakong and Sungai Kandis by-election campaigns, all of which PH won. – FREE MALAYSIA TODAY
Rantau has become Mat Hasan-Anwar battlefield
WITH less than 24 hours to go before Rantau voters cast their ballots, the by-election has geared up to be more than a battle between its two strongest candidates – Barisan Nasional’s (BN) Mohamad Hasan and Pakatan Harapan’s (PH) Dr S. Streram.
Instead, the past two weeks of relentless campaigning has shown itself to be a test of strength between PKR president Anwar Ibrahim and Mohamad Hasan, who is acting Umno chief.
In all his ceramah speeches, Anwar has been consistent in his attacks on Mohamad, who is popularly known as Tok Mat.
Anwar, who is Port Dickson MP, has been holding political talks every other night to try and garner support for Streram and for himself, with most of his attention on securing the support of the Indians and Malays.
Of the 20,925 voters in Rantau, Malays comprise 55.11% or 11,283, Chinese (18.8% or 3,849) and Indians (26.06% or 5,336) in 14 voting districts.
While the rural Malay voters have traditionally voted for BN, Anwar and PH are hoping to shift some of their allegiance to the ruling pact while retaining support of the non-Malays.
To Indian voters, Anwar has promised development and work opportunities, while to the Malays, he has constantly stressed the special positions of the Malays and Islam in the country are non-negotiable.
But while the crowds of some 150 people appear to be highly supportive of Anwar, most analysts and academics say that Mohamad is still the firm favourite to win as he is the incumbent and a popular figure in Rantau.
“Although PKR has an Indian candidate, it’s not automatic that the Indian voters will support him, or the Chinese for that matter,” said Shamsul Amri Baharuddin, director of the Institute of Ethnic Studies (Kita), Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM).
“This is because Tok Mat has been representing Rantau for a long time and he is perceived as someone who serves.”
Yesterday, Ilham centre reported that their survey on 396 Rantau voters revealed that Mohamad is likely to emerge victorious as the former Negri Sembilan menteri besar is seen as a more credible candidate.
However, Mazlan Ali, senior lecturer at Perdana Centre, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, said BN’s win will not be as straightforward as it was in the Semenyih by-election a month ago.
To win comfortably in Rantau, he said, BN has to target a high percentage of voter turnout.
“The chances are even, If PH gets 13% to 15% of the Malay votes and retain the Chinese and Indian vote, PH can pull off a narrow win. Voter turnout will influence the result.
“The reality in rural areas like Rantau is that Malay support is strongly with BN. The stoking of the Malay and Islam sentiments is effective. If PH can pull some support, the chance to win is there.”
Mazlan said Najib Razak and his “Apa Malu Bosku” phenomenon have played a significantly smaller role in Rantau as it did in Semenyih and Cameron Highlands, two by-elections won by BN.
This was due to the beginning of his criminal trials in the SRC International Sdn Bhd scandal.
“The charges and trial against Najib have put a dampener on his campaign,” said Mazlan.
“This has disrupted Najib’s tempo that has caused the ‘Bosku’ brand in Rantau to be less popular.”
With Najib’s popularity giving only a minor boost to BN’s fortunes, the Rantau polls tomorrow will now be seen as a referendum for the Malay leadership of Anwar and Mohamad. – THE MALAYSIAN INSIGHT
FREE MALAYSIA TODAY / THE MALAYSIAN INSIGHT
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.