STATE POLLS | Fielded as the first woman candidate in Pantai Merdeka since the constituency’s inception, BN’s Wan Mohalina Wan Mohamad is bent on snatching the Kedah state seat back from Perikatan Nasional.
Wan Mohalina, 54, told Malaysiakini on Wednesday she was confident those who voted for PN during the 15th general election (GE15) would flip to support BN in this state polls.
Based on a survey carried out by her team, she claimed it’s highly unlikely for the “Green Wave” to hit Pantai Merdeka’s shores this time around.
“We don’t see such a ‘wave’ this state election. Youths, who ‘rode’ the ‘wave’ last time, do not see that there are any benefits from their decision (in GE15).
“So we might see a difference in the youths’ voting pattern.
“The surveys that we carried out showed a change - that they will be flipped,” the Sungai Petani Umno Women chief claimed.
Wan Mohalina did not mince her words when she said PN is plagued by many “issues” and as such, it has slowed down the opposition coalition’s campaigning efforts.
Among those issues include sedition charges against caretaker Kedah menteri besar Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor for uttering words that had a tendency to incite disloyalty against a ruler, as well as money laundering and corruption charges related to the Jana Wibawa programme involving PN chairperson Muhyiddin Yassin and its coalition leaders.
“We see that PN is not all that clean (‘bersih’) after all.
“But I don’t want to talk bad about others, because I’m here to show the people what I have to offer.
“What is important to me is that we want the people to choose a representative who has the capabilities and skills to do work.”
Pantai Merdeka is a Malay-majority seat and had been held by both BN and PAS in the past.
GE15 data showed that 54.1 percent of voters cast their ballots for PN, 30.3 percent for BN, 13.9 percent for Harapan, 1.6 percent for Gerakan Tanah Air (GTA), and 0.1 percent for Parti Rakyat Malaysia (PRM).
On paper, if at least five percent of PN voters flipped to BN and Harapan, Wan Mohalina could emerge victorious.
However, Malaysiakini’s observations among voters on the ground suggest this would not be an easy feat.
Voting preferences remain
A straw poll by the portal among 14 voters in various parts of Pantai Merdeka - Bukit Kechik, Kuala Muda, Pekan Tikam Batu, Kampung Simpor, and Telok Wang - found almost everyone had not changed their voting preferences from last year.
Meanwhile, PN’s candidate Shahrir Long also has a considerable following.
He contested for the Sungai Petani parliamentary seat in the 2018 general election under PAS, but was defeated by Harapan’s Johari Abdul.
However, he has also made a name for himself as a preacher.
PN supporter Muhammad Zahid Mahmudin, 26, said Shahrir’s popularity as a freelance preacher and enthusiasm to help those in need, especially students, have made it difficult for rivals to break the “Green Wave” among youths.
“I am among those whom ustaz (Shahrir) has helped. When I was a student at Universiti Utara Malaysia, I had a financial problem.
“He is willing to go to his (religious) ceramah to ask for donations for students who want to further their studies but did not have the means to.
“So there are a lot of youths who are big supporters of ustaz (Shahrir),” the roadside food seller told Malaysiakini.
Meanwhile, like in many other Kedah seats, Sanusi is also another pull factor for PN supporters.
When met at a fruit shop where Ghani Ayob works, the 47-year-old revealed that he was part of the “lawan Anwar” (fight Anwar) hand raise “gang”.
This is in reference to Sanusi mockingly copying Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s iconic hand-raised pose during the Reformasi era, after the former was charged with sedition last month.
“I’m ‘raising my hand’. I have always been a PAS supporter, now and forever.
“And I know Shahrir, he always works the ground to help the people,” he said briefly.
Another voter who is casting his ballot for PN because of Sanusi is a 23-year-old fisherfolk, who only wanted to be known as Apit.
Sitting on a motorcycle and sipping an iced coffee on a scorching afternoon, Apit said he is set on voting for PN this Saturday because of Sanusi’s good deeds to Kedahans since the latter became menteri besar.
“My parents are huge fans of BN but it’s okay, to each to their own.
“Sanusi is really cool (‘sempoi’), all that he has done is for the people and he is always meeting the people to help them. He is a good person.”
Sharing similar sentiments was 62-year-old laksa and chicken rice seller, Aisyah Hashim.
Aisyah revealed that she was once a staunch supporter of BN but has since switched allegiance to PN after Muhyiddin took office in 2020.
“The way I look at it, it’s not right for (Umno president Ahmad) Zahid (Hamidi) to sack those who do not support him. That’s wrong.
“Muhyiddin helped the people during the movement control order (MCO) by giving us aid and so much help. Sanusi is the same, I support him,” she said as she put on a worn-out apron over her floral baju kurung.
Meanwhile, Yusoof Awang, who was a committee member of the Sungai Petani Umno division, divulged that he has a “wait and see” approach and will not be deciding until polling day.
While the 60-year-old food vendor in Kuala Muda insisted that he was an Umno loyalist, he said he was among those disappointed with the previous BN state government for its poor management and administration.
“I was a tsunami victim in 2004 and was given a replacement home after the tragedy. A few years later, I sent in applications to obtain the grant for the house but to no avail…
“I waited for almost 15 years, but in the span of the three years Sanusi became the menteri besar, he awarded the grant to me.
“This is the difference between the previous governments and this new one, it’s faster, more aggressive in helping the people.
“But I will be a fence-sitter for the time being,” he said.
More swinging toward PN
Separately, another Umno grassroots member, who asked to remain anonymous in order to speak more freely, expressed concerns over the potential flip from BN to PN.
Speaking to Malaysiakini, the 74-year-old retiree expressed disappointment, bemoaning that the younger generation forgot Umno’s service to the people.
“The roads, water supply, and electricity, it’s all Umno’s efforts, not PAS!
“How is it possible for them to ‘terkalih’ (flip) so easily?”
Meanwhile, she also claimed there are some villagers, who are BN supporters, who have been swayed by PAS campaigners.
“PAS would hold door-to-door ceramah about religion. And when they campaign, they would say ‘if you are in Umno, you will go to hell’.
“They also questioned Umno supporters for joining the party, calling them ‘kafirs’ (infidels). That’s not true, you don’t become ‘kafirs’ because of parties. There are no parties in Islam.
“But youths these days, they would believe whatever PAS tells them,” she said.
This isn’t the only time the issue of labelling others as infidels has cropped up in the Pantai Merdeka campaign.
Recently, a TikTok video of Shahrir uttering the statement “kafir harbi got 40 (parliamentary seats)”, had emerged and made its rounds on social media.
While he did not mention any parties or names, it is believed that Shahrir was referring to DAP, which has 40 seats in the Dewan Rakyat.
“Those who say they are fighting for religion and race but don’t align themselves with Muslims.
“They are so angry with the kafir harbi, yet finally align themselves with the kafir harbi,” he said in the video, likely referring to the BN-Pakatan Harapan political pact.
Kafir harbi refers to non-Muslims who are against Islam, as opposed to kafir zimmi, who are non-Muslims who live peacefully within an Islamic nation and whose rights are protected.
The use of the term kafir harbi to refer to non-Muslims is contentious because it is usually used in the context of warfare, when killing enemies is permitted.
In response, Wan Mohalina, who is popularly known as Kak Wan among the locals, asserted that voters would shun those who raise such issues.
“Issues to kafir-mengkafirkan (declaring others as infidels) should not be used during the elections
“If someone speaks like that, it portrays the kind of leader he or she will be in the future and I hope the voters will see it,” she said.
Kedah goes to the polls on Aug 12. - Mkini
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