Ex-serviceman: BN losing military votes
Contrary to the claim by the deputy defence minister, the RMAF Veterans Association president says the more controversies that crop up concerning military procurement, the worse it is for BN.
(Free Malaysia Today) – It is Barisan Nasional and not the opposition which is witnessing a decline in support from those serving the military, said the Royal Malaysian Air Force Veterans Association.
Its president Shahrin Osman said the government’s silence over the controversies surrounding military procurement could result in an electoral backlash.
“The more the opposition tells these stories, the more army men and ex-army men will vote for the opposition,” said the former flight sergeant.
“The government should counter these claims by proving to the public what they are doing is right. But the problem is there is no approach from the government at all to address this,” he told FMT.
He was responding to Deputy Defence Minister Abdul Latiff Ahmad who told Parliament yesterday that politicising the issue of military procurement would hurt the feelings of servicemen and result in them supporting BN.
Shahrin also said that most of the ex-armed forces personnel do not trust the mainstream media, especially the Umno-owned Utusan Malaysia.
“I just spoke to some of them, and they are saying they don’t read Utusan now. It only carries ‘sweet stories’ (about the government),” he said.
Opposition blows things up
On the same note, Shahrin also pointed out that the opposition had a tendency for blowing things out of proportion.
“Not all their allegations are totally false but the opposition tends to exaggerate. If the story is 10% real, usually they’ll add another 30% of fiction.
“But it is not wrong for them to raise questions. When we were in the armed forces, we knew the prices and we knew the prices become higher when it comes to buying,” he said.
Shahrin said the government should go down to the ground to explain to the people the truth.
“This is what my NGO is doing. We organise programmes asking ministers to clarify their actions and what benefit it does for the people,” he added.
Shahrin said that the government’s treatment of retired armed forces personnel was also not helping the situation.
“Many things are not fulfilled. Many of us feel cheated by the government. The pensions are also too little for these men, who find it hard to adapt to civilian life and normal jobs,” he said.
