AFTER losing in all of the by-elections it has contested in the peninsula since March 2008, the Barisan Nasional (BN)’s Bagan Pinang win must taste like ambrosia. The BN’s candidate from Umno, Tan Sri Isa Samad, polled 8,013 votes against the 2,578 votes garnered by PAS’s Zulkefly Omar. In fact, Isa’s majority of 5,435 votes […]
Shanon Shah
All eyes on Bagan Pinang
By Shanon Shah
BAGAN Pinang initially awakened to light thunder and a drizzle on 11 Oct 2009; the kind of Sunday morning that is made for sleeping in. But today is polling day, the culmination of a week of bizarre and occasionally sluggish campaigning by both the Barisan Nasional (BN) and Pakatan Rakyat (PR). It is a tense […]
A bizarre week in Bagan Pinang
By Shanon ShahWorshippers at Masjid Qariah MASJID Qariah Bagan Pinang, Port Dickson, is sandwiched between a major Barisan Nasional (BN) operations centre and PAS’s main by-election headquarters along Jalan Pantai. On Friday, 9 Oct 2009, the mosque was bursting at the seams with worshippers. In his khutbah, the imam said Islam is a religion of unity and […]
Dishonesty in Bagan Pinang
By Shanon ShahStrange (and dishonest) BN math THERE is a ubiquitous campaign billboard in Port Dickson now. It says, “For 63 years, Barisan Nasional (BN) has protected you. Don’t destroy the country’s security.” The arithmetic is baffling. The BN was officially registered as a coalition in July 1974. As at October 2009, this would make the BN […]
Bread and butter in Bagan Pinang
By Shanon ShahBread and butter issues (© Bruno Neves / sxc.hu) “IN Malaysia, we must vote for Barisan Nasional (BN); we have been voting for them for a long time,” says T Muniandy. “We help them by voting for them, and then they help us.” It is 6 Oct 2009, the fourth day of the Bagan Pinang […]
High stakes in Bagan Pinang
By Shanon ShahCorrected at 1:50pm, 5 Oct 2009 Outside the BN headquarters in Bagan Pinang prior to nomination day on 3 Oct “IF the Barisan Nasional (BN) loses, it will be catastrophic,” Umno Youth chief and Rembau Member of Parliament Khairy Jamaluddin tells The Nut Graph in a phone interview. Talk about high stakes. But he is […]
Making minorities count
By Shanon Shah(source: drsitimariah.blogspot.com) “PAS for all” was an enchanting slogan indeed during the March 2008 general election. It was a sentiment that allowed for a warm partnership to develop between PAS and its eventual Pakatan Rakyat (PR) partners, Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) and DAP. It was also what convinced Malaysians of all races to vote for […]
“Lahirkan kesakitan dengan berkarya”
By Shanon ShahPERLIS-born Nam Ron has been called “one of the freshest voices declaiming in contemporary Malaysian theatre”. The talented playwright won Best Original Malay Script at the Boh Cameronian Arts Awards for his Perlis gangster history, matderihkolaperlih, in 2004. He has since been multiply-nominated for his plays Lembu (2005), Laut Lebih Indah Dari Bulan and WIP […]
Ops Sikap
By The Nut Graph teamTHE Hari Raya holidays have just passed and the results are out. As usual, the big numbers are still there, and are still disturbing. 2009’s Ops Sikap, the 20th one running since its start in 2001, saw 261 road deaths during this Aidilfitri period. On Sunday, 27 Sept, alone there were 23 fatalities on our […]
Living with the Ahmadiyah
By Shanon ShahOsman “WE have to live with those who do not accept Islam,” Emeritus Prof Datuk Dr Osman Bakar tells The Nut Graph in a phone interview. Osman, who is deputy chief executive officer of the International Institute of Advanced Islamic Studies (IAIS) Malaysia, says this applies to how Muslims treat Ahmadiyah as well. “The theological […]
