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Malaysia Today
Malaysia Today will try to update you with the latest developments in Permatang Pauh from time to time, as the reports from the ground come in. Tonight, we shall also try to give you the unofficial results from the polling station/counting centres ahead of the official results.
7.25pm TMNet is blocking all Streamyx users from accessing Malaysia Today. The updating is being done from outside Malaysia or else we can't even do that. 7.15pm Unofficial results show that so far Anwar is winning by a majority of more than 15,000 votes and if the trend continues it could even touch 20,000 votes. 5.45pm Polling closed at 5.00pm. Malaysian Insider reported a 70% voter turn-out. PKR reports it closer to 80%. 5 buses were detained. YB Gobalakrishnan and his two sons were arrested and beaten up by the police. 4.30pm Kuala Lumpur bookies have reduced the odds of Anwar winning by a majority of only 4,000 votes. UMNO has estimated that Anwar may win by about 6,000 votes. Gangsters have been going around the Chinese areas to warn the Chinese to not come out to vote. 4.15pm It has been confirmed that Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has flown back to KL, indicating that UMNO has lost and that he no longer sees any purpose in remaining in Penang. A few more busloads of phantom voters have been stopped. With barely an hour left till the polling stations close, and the thousands still stuck in massive traffic jams at police road-blocks, it is feared that many will not be able to vote -- thereby denying Anwar the 15,000-17,000 majority. 3.45pm PKR workers have detained two busloads of phantom voters at Mengkuang Titi. Many police reports about fraud and vote-rigging have been made. Voter turn-out has exceeded 60% but still far short of expectations. UMNO, however, reports a 70% voter turn-out. 3.30pm Malaysia Today has received a phone call from a reliable source that Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has conceded defeat and has left for the airport. Can Malaysia Today's readers please confirm this information or whether this is a Red Herring meant to lull PKR supporters into complacency so that they don't work too hard to get the voters to come out and vote. 3.00pm
Voter turn-out is very low, estimated about 60%. Many factories refuse to declare today a public holiday. They will, however, allow their workers time off for a couple of hours but the massive traffic jams due to the many police road blocks are deterring the voters from going to the polling stations.
PKR is mobilising cars and motorcycles and is knocking on the doors of the voters who are yet to come out to vote and is ferrying them to the polling stations. The rain is also a stumbling block, especially when many depend on motorcycles for transportation. 1.40pm Voter turn-out is still below 60% and that is worrying the people in PKR. Furthermore, most of the voters are from 'saluran 1' while those from 'saluran 3' are not coming out to vote. 1.15pm Most voters checked their voter registration at the PKR pondok panas and YB Ronnie Liu estimated a landslide win for Anwar Ibrahim. 12.30pm More than 50% have come out to cast their votes. 11.30am from Azmin Ali
UMNO and the police are attempting to prevent the Chinese and Indian voters from coming out to vote. 10.30am
Some PKR ‘pondok panas’ were abandoned. It is reported that BN may have bought off some party workers so that there would be no PKR pondok panas to service the voters.
There is a reported heavy presence of security personnel in the Chinese areas. It is suspected that this move is meant to intimidate the Chinese voters so that they do not come out to vote. Some security personnel were seen ‘marching in formation’ as if ready for confrontation.
UMNO is targeting to ensure that Anwar Ibrahim wins with not more than a 10,000-vote majority. If UMNO can reduce Anwar’s majority to a mere 10,000 votes then this will be accepted as a ‘victory’ for BN and a cause for celebration.
Forecasts from the ground say that Anwar may win with a 15,000-17,000 majority. Around 70% of the 58,000 voters are expected to turn out. 69% of the voters are Malays and 31% non-Malays. Anwar is expected to secure 55%-60% of the Malay votes and about 80% or so of the non-Malay votes.
The Bloggers from Kuala Lumpur, who have been campaigning and conducting ceramahs in Permatang Pauh since the weekend, are now on the ground visiting the polling stations. RPK’s wife is also making her rounds of the polling stations in a last-ditch attempt to woo the voters. ************************************* Below are some information that I got from my contacts in Permatang Pauh. Notice I did not write much about Permatang Pauh. I was following closely thru a few contacts and I didn't want to accidentally expose some vital information to the enemy.
1.0 It seems UMNO had used the "Sumpah Saiful" issue to early. It gave a lot of time for Pakatan Rakyat to neutralize the effects of the issue. The ultimate blow to BN's nose is when the Imam who oversaw the "Sumpah" ceremony of Saiful went public and told that he was used by UMNO to do the Sumpah.
2.0 In the first week of the campaign, we were very worried about the "Sumpah Saiful" ammunition by UMNO. To compound the problem is Anwar Ibrahim's reluctance to conduct the same "Sumpah Ceremony" because he is adhering to Islamic Fatwa from Islamic scholars on the issue. But the Ramlang Ponrigi expose has effectively neutralized the issue.
3.0 Malaysiakini reports "Malays split 60-30 on Saiful's confession" indicates that Malays believing in the UMNO's deception is limited to hard-core UMNO supporters only. Pity for BN because apparently they are banking on this one "silver bullet" and it missed.
4.0 UMNO has been using highly racial and religously sensitive issues against Anwar Ibrahim hoping that the Majority Malay electorate will be swayed. Apparently, they have given up on the non Malay votes and consider the Non malay votes as goners.
5.0 PAS is pulling no stop in helping Anwar Ibrahim reelected as MP for Permatang Pauh. The BN candidate tried to approach Ustaz Hamdan Abdul Rahman hoping to sway him into weakening the PAS election machinery, but Ustaz Hamdan turned him down flat. So, that avenue had failed
That's all I am at liberty to say. All we can do now is pray and get people to come out to vote in large numbers.
May Allah SWT grant us victory.
Tulang BesiMALAYSIAN WAVES
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The Blogs 
Let's hope the Permatang Pauh voters are made of sterner stuff!!
May the force be with you, Anwar and may you achieve the victory that will result the UMNOputras scurrying away without a whisper and their tails between their legs!!