Balancing the Hulu Selangor scale
The Hulu Selangor by-election is heating up as it is indeed a crucial by-election in the light of recent developments on both sides of the divide. The Hulu Selangor vote was triggered by the death of its MP, PKR’s Datuk Dr Zainal Abidin Ahmad, who succumbed to brain cancer late last month.
While PR may think it can ride on the tsunami 2008 victory, the reality is that the four recent resignations from PKR has dented its image considerably. The fact is that PR needs to boost its image while BN is trying to regain lost ground to be in good stead by the next GE.
The main factor will be the choice of candidates for BN and PR and both parties are playing their cards carefully because of the delicate situation and both cannot afford to lose. At this stage, it is clear that Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Rakyat are in a race to dish out goodies as they attempt to outdo each other in the Hulu Selangor race. A win for BN would be a clear indicator of voter confidence towards the ruling coalition and Najib’s leadership and possibly waning support for PR.
Today, The Malaysian Insider reported HERE that their strawpoll indicate locals prefer Datuk Zaid Ibrahim over local born neurosurgeon Datuk Dr Halili Rahmat. About 60 per cent of the voters polled yesterday said that they would vote Zaid while 40 per cent said they will back anyone to replace MP Datuk Dr Zainal Abidin Ahmad — whose death last month triggered the April 25 by-election.
According to THIS LINK, Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Ahmad Maslan said that BN will pick a local candidate for the Hulu Selangor by-election to win over the hearts of voters. Such a candidate would be perceived as being able to give the best service to the people of Hulu Selangor if returned in the election because of the intimate knowledge he has of the constituency as it is his place of birth. Conversely, outsiders were sometimes seen as “Touch ‘n Go” candidates and less favored.
Let’s have a look at the goodies that have been offered so far. Needless to say, with the backing of the federal government, BN is leading in terms of ringgit and sen. This link said that BN have proposed to spend close to RM60 million on various infrastructure projects including:
