IN the final days before voters go to the polls in Bukit Gantang, PAS candidate Datuk Seri Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin appears to have changed tack in his campaign. The first few days after the 29 April nomination day, colourful photo-ops of Nizar were aplenty. Frying char kway teow as he wooed Chinese Malaysian voters. Mending […]
Pakatan Rakyat
Psy-war in Sungai Petani
By Shanon Shah
CAMPAIGNING in the hotly contested state seat of Bukit Selambau, Kedah, has been relatively muted, with both the Barisan Nasional (BN) and Pakatan Rakyat (PR) zooming in on each others’ Achilles heels in an escalating psy-war. The three parties in the PR — Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR), PAS and DAP — have been attacking the […]
Avoiding issues in Bukit Selambau
By Shanon ShahShahrizat Abdul Jalil THE Barisan Nasional (BN) and Pakatan Rakyat (PR) both seem keen to avoid their vulnerabilities in their campaigns to win the state seat of Bukit Selambau in Kedah. For example, at BN press conferences and interviews, including by candidate Datuk S Ganesan, leaders refuse to address allegations that new Prime Minister Datuk […]
King urged to delay Najib appointment (Updated)
By Zedeck Siew(Updated 6:36pm, 2 April 2009) PETALING JAYA, 2 April 2009: Eighty-one Opposition members of parliament (MPs) have signed a petition urging the Yang di-Pertuan Agong to delay the appointment of Datuk Seri Najib Razak as prime minister until his reputation has been cleared by an independent commission. “The office of Prime Minister is the highest […]
BN and PAS face off in Perak
By Deborah Loh(Pic by Raj Kumar, courtesy of theSun) NO other issue dominates the Bukit Gantang by-election as much as the Barisan Nasional (BN)’s 5 Feb 2009 takeover of the Perak state government and the sultan’s role in it. As the BN and Pakatan Rakyat (PR) take to the campaign trail, who has the better argument in […]
No holds barred in Bukit Gantang
By Deborah LohCorrected at 1 April 2009, 11.15pm and 2 April 2009, 2.11.pm THE Bukit Gantang parliamentary seat can be considered a mini-Malaysia as its racial population breakdown reflects the country’s ethnic composition. With 63.5% Malay Malaysian and 35% non-Malay Malaysians voters in the constituency, what happens here could well reflect the national sentiment. (Corrected) Expect a […]
Apologise, PKR’s Gobalakrishnan told
By Shanon ShahSUNGAI PETANI, 1 Apr 2009: Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR)’s N Gobalakrishnan has 24 hours to apologise publicly for accusing Bukit Selambau’s independent candidates of being Barisan Nasional (BN) stooges, said independent candidate L Sarala. Sarala “I also want him to show evidence today that we have received money from the BN to contest,” Sarala said […]
Chaos and confidence in Bukit Selambau
By Shanon Shah(Corrected at 3.34pm on 1 April 2009) OF the three simultaneous and upcoming by-elections on 7 April, the Bukit Selambau state seat in Kedah appears to be the most fascinating. On 12 March 2009, The Star reported that the Kedah police force had identified three “hot spots” in Bukit Selambau. Then on 19 March 2009, […]
Independents’ day
By Shanon Shah“WITH independent candidates, it depends on their ‘roots’,” says Kedah Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) information chief Ahmad Kasim. “For example, if they were originally from PKR, they will naturally pull votes away from the PKR candidate.” But if they were originally from the Barisan Nasional (BN), he says, they will split votes for the BN. […]
The tussle for Bkt Selambau
By Shanon Shah
NOMINATION day for the Bukit Selambau by-election opened relatively calmly on 29 March 2009, a schoolday and work day here in Kedah. Journalists and the candidates’ supporters started trickling into the nomination centre, Sekolah Menengah Teknik Sungai Petani 1, from 7am. There had been speculation that things could get chaotic, considering the Election Commission (EC) […]
