A man peers over his shoulder outside Pasar Payang (All pics by Lainie Yeoh, unless otherwise noted) SATURDAY, 17 Jan 2009, is D-Day for Kuala Terengganu, but things are no clearer as to which way the votes will go. Trying to understand how voters here decide has been an intriguing exercise. Despite enthusiastic responses to […]
Features
Fence-sitters hold the key
By Danny LimYoung Malay villagers among the elderly at a PAS ceramah in Kampung Panji, Wakaf Mempelam on 12 Jan 2009 WITH the Chinese Malaysian voters — considered the decisive votes in the Kuala Terengganu by-election — appearing to lean towards PAS, attention is now shifting to the Malay Malaysian votes. The Chinese Malaysian community’s enthusiastic support […]
Reckoning with the electorate
By Deborah LohBN streamer in front of a temple in Kampung Cina IN the March 2008 general election, the 11% Chinese Malaysian voters in Kuala Terengganu were considered the swing voters in this largely Malay Malaysian constituency. Analysts have predicted that the Chinese Malaysian vote will also decide the results of the upcoming 17 Jan by-election as […]
On the ceramah trail
By Danny LimCorrected on 15 Jan 2009 at 1am PAS ceramah in Kampung Panji, in the Wakaf Mempelam state constituency, surrounded by shrubbery IN the first half of a cool campaign that has matched the breeze blowing in from the South China Sea, the barrage of issues lobbed between the two major competing parties has mostly avoided […]
Surviving perception
By Deborah LohPOOR Datuk Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh. Much has been made of his looks and demeanour in an election where perception could turn out to mean everything. As the Barisan Nasional (BN) candidate in the Kuala Terengganu parliamentary by-election, Wan Farid has been advised to smile more and behave less snobbishly. In this semi-urban east […]
Wahid’s likeability factor
By Deborah LohPAS candidate Abdul Wahid Endut on his walkabout to meet voters in Kg Cina THOUGH PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang claims divine intervention in his selection of the party’s candidate for the Kuala Terengganu parliamentary by-election, there could be a more earthly, tactical reason. There is a story about the candidate, Abdul Wahid […]
Politicising Islam in KT
By Deborah LohBN poster on religious classes THE use of religion is a given in any election campaign that involves the ruling Umno and the Islamist opposition, PAS. It’s no different in the Kuala Terengganu parliamentary by-election, where Islam is used as a selling point on the Malay-Muslim majority in the constituency, who comprise 88.13% of the […]
KT’s odd man out
By Danny Lim(All pics by Danny Lim) WHEN independent candidate Azharudin Mamat @ Adam was explaining how he was going to campaign in the Kuala Terengganu by-election, he chuckled and said, “Saya pelik sikit.” Because not only does he not have a campaign slogan, he is not going house-to-house to canvass votes. Neither is he going to […]
Terengganu’s slippery oil royalty
By Deborah LohPUBLICISED figures on the amount of oil royalty remitted to Terengganu don’t match. And because no clear explanation is forthcoming, expect the issue to be exploited by PAS, and glossed over by the Barisan Nasional (BN) in the Kuala Terengganu parliamentary by-election. PAS promises to flog the issue in its campaign. The BN, however, already […]
Curtain up in Kuala Terengganu
By Danny LimCorrected on 8 Jan 2009 at 7.45am (Updated 12.33pm, 7 Jan 2009) Press photographers having a field day covering Nomination Day at Stadium Negeri in Kuala Terengganu TEN minutes before the nomination centre at the Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin Indoor Stadium in Kuala Terengganu opened at 9am on 6 Jan 2009 for the Kuala Terengganu […]
