Ramasamy: Indian vote slipping away, KKB a 'pyrrhic victory'

 

Former Penang deputy chief minister P Ramasamy has responded to Pakatan Harapan’s comfortable win in the Kuala Kubu Baharu by-election, insisting that Indian voters are looking at other options.

While Chinese voters for the lack of a political alternative stuck to Harapan, he said, Indians have been experimenting with other choices.

“The increased Malay support was brought about by the ‘bribes’ offered by the Madani government, particularly the announcement of a 13 percent salary increase (amounting to RM10 billion) for civil servants.

“This remuneration particularly impacted the voting behaviour of uniformed personnel - the army and the police.

“The Indians were not particularly affected by the announcement of the RM75 million housing project for the estate workers in the five estates in the Bistari Jaya area,” he said in a statement today.

Nor were they enthralled by the other announcement of an RM5.2 million development project for the Hulu Selangor area, he added.

After being dumped as a DAP candidate in last year’s state election, Ramasamy became a vocal critic of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and the coalition government.

The former DAP leader called Harapan candidate Pang Sock Tao’s win yesterday a “pyrrhic victory”, referring to a triumph that inflicts such a devastating toll on the victor that it is tantamount to defeat.

Lower turnout

Ramasamy said slightly fewer than 50 percent of Indians voted in the Kuala Kubu Baharu polls and turnout was much lower compared with the 2023 state election.

However, this tallies with a general trend of overall lower turnout in by-elections in recent years and Pang’s 3,869 majority was marginally lower than incumbent Lee Kee Hiong, who won by 4,113 votes last year.

KKB by-election winner Harapan’s Pang Sock Tao

“The dissatisfaction of the Indian community against the Harapan coalition, which began in the 2023 state election, continued in the Kuala Kubu Baharu polls.

“In the future Indians will continue to boycott or vote against Harapan candidates.

“The campaign by Urimai to not vote for the Harapan/DAP candidate was successful to some extent,” Ramasamy claimed. - Mkini