JOHOR BY-ELECTIONS | Former PAS state assemblyperson Dr Sheikh Ibrahim Sheikh Salleh believes that there is only one choice for Pakatan Harapan and BN in Simpang Jeram and Pulai this Saturday, which is to achieve victory.
However, according to the veteran politician who is a retired medical doctor, the victory of the unity government this Saturday will make the opposition more active in playing racial and religious issues.
"Perikatan Nasional will use that issue because they have no other issues or ideas to develop the country and society.
"Thus PN will use both issues to attract the people's support," he said in an interview with Malaysiakini yesterday.
The 68-year-old was the driving force behind PAS in the Bakri parliamentary constituency ever since the party's branch was established there in 1985.
He found it difficult to establish a foothold in Johor, which is seen as a traditional Umno stronghold, but PAS was finally accepted leading to the victory of Sheikh Ibrahim for the Sungai Abong state seat in 2008.
He defended the seat again in 2013.
Move to Amanah
Even so, Johor also made its own history as the location for the initial steps in the establishment of Amanah following the internal crisis in PAS that reached its peak in 2015.
The 14th general election in 2018 saw Sungai Abong renamed Simpang Jeram. Sheikh Ibrahim (above) is no longer active in politics but he witnessed how the seat he represented for two terms was filled by Salahuddin Ayub.
Sheikh Ibrahim officially joined Amanah in 2019 and considers the party to be in line with his soul.
"PAS is now more about fighting for Malay and Islamic racism which is quite harsh, so it cannot be accepted by non-Muslims," said Sheikh Ibrahim.
Ahead of voting day this Saturday, Sheikh Ibrahim hopes that voters in Simpang Jeram will choose the party that takes a moderate political approach, namely Harapan and BN.
Govt must step up countermeasures against hate
Even so, there is concern in Sheikh Ibrahim's heart because the victory of the government party candidate, Nazri Abdul Rahman, leaves PN with no choice but to play with race and religion issues more creatively.
At the same time, Sheikh Ibrahim admitted that the government's countermeasures to curb such campaigns were less effective, especially when the opposition brought hateful narratives.
What can be done, he said, is to counter-explain as best as possible, but it faces challenges due to the PN's dominance of social media.
"We hope that the people here can evaluate all the allegations brought by PN through various media," he said.
Meanwhile, Sheikh Ibrahim was also positive to see the response among Umno supporters as a result of the aggressive campaign carried out by the party's leaders.
What is happening now, he said, is so promising.
"I was campaigning with Johor Umno leaders and I saw the body language reaction of Umno members showing that they can accept the Harapan candidate," he said.
In the Simpang Jeram by-election this Saturday, Nazri from Amanah became the government party's candidate in their effort to defend the seat left vacant following Salahuddin's passing.
He faces a challenge from PAS-PN candidate, Dr Mohd Mazri Yahya, as well as an independent candidate, S Jeganathan.
In the last Johor state election in 2022, Salahuddin won the seat with 8,749 votes, ahead of his nearest challenger by a margin of 2,399 votes. - Mkini
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