Malaysia by-elections: BN banks on goodwill as opposition plays up 1MDB scandal
The UMNO-led ruling coalition Barisan Nasional is banking on goodwill to boost its chances at the polls and has mobilised its women’s wing to go to the ground to bolster grassroot support especially in rural areas.
(Channel NewsAsia) – Two constituencies in the Malaysian states of Perak and Selangor have gone back to the polls on Saturday (Jun 18), following the deaths of their members of parliament in a helicopter crash in May this year.
The results will be closely watched as a bellwether on how Malaysians will vote in general elections due in two years.
Less than two hours drive from Kuala Lumpur, Sungai Besar is a complete change of scenery, with quaint fishing villages on one side and rolling paddy fields on the other .
And fighting to represent Sungai Besar in parliament are the candidates from BN and two opposition parties.
The oppositions’ efforts to play up the multi-billion dollar financial scandal involving state fund 1MDB have resonated with some of the Chinese minority living in the town centre.
Said one lady: “I really detest corruption … will i get into trouble for saying it openly?”
But rural folk like farmer Mohd Musa Yaman and his brother Abu Bakar Abdul Rahman are less bothered by the 1MDB issue.
“We just pretend we don’t know, what is there to be angry? It’s up to them what they want to do with the money,” said farmer and artist Mohd Musa Yaman.
“If we ask questions they will say there isn’t anything wrong, their answers are giving me a headache if we think about it,” added Mr Abu Bakar Abdul Rahman.
Instead the brothers say they are thankful for the occasional handouts from the government.
“My grandma has been ill , they (BN) have come and helped me out in the past,” Abu Bakar Abdul Rahman said.
The UMNO-led ruling coalition is banking on this goodwill to boost its chances at the polls and has mobilised its women’s wing to go to the ground to bolster grassroot support especially in rural areas.
The rural Malay vote was crucial for getting Prime Minister Najib Razak’s coalition over the line in the last general elections and it’s expected to play a similar role in the next one.
There are over 80 marginal seats like Sungei Besar and Kuala Kangsar across Malaysia. How the rural Malays vote in these two by elections will be closely scrutinised by both sides because ultimately it is their votes that will decide who wins, who loses in the next big fight – the 14th General Election that is not due till 2018.
