Malaysian general election set for May 5

ARCHIVES 2013

By admin-s On Apr 11, 2013

(Today Online) – Nomination Day is on April 20, 15-day campaign period is the longest in three decades

Malaysians will head to the ballot box on May 5, for what is shaping up to be one of the most closely-fought elections in the history of Singapore’s next-door neighbour.

While speculation was rife that Polling Day would be earlier, political pundits were not surprised by the 15-day campaign period — the longest in about three decades — decided upon by the country’s Election Commission, given the expected intensity of the electoral contests.

Nomination Day is on April 20. There are 222 Parliamentary and 505 state seats at stake. Sarawak will sit out this round of state elections as it went to the polls in 2011.

Some 13.3 million Malaysians are eligible to vote this time around, with first-time voters making up about 2.6 million of this number.

Analysts have noted that the election is crucial to Prime Minister Najib Razak, who is seeking a mandate to carry on with the country’s economic transformation after taking over in 2009 as the country’s sixth Prime Minister.

Election Commission Chair Abdul Aziz Mohd Yusof said in a televised press conference: “We have checked and decided on May 5 as the date for elections, because the date is free from any important events.”

While the political parties are only allowed to campaign from Nomination Day onwards, election fever has gripped the country since Mr Najib dissolved Parliament last Wednesday.

Yesterday’s announcement was a prelude to a flurry of election activities in Malaysia’s capital: The ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition organised a closed-door session at the Putra World Trade Centre where Mr Najib gave an “explosive” speech — in the words of members of the audience — to hundreds of BN leaders.

About 1,000 United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) Selangor activists also gathered in Shah Alam, where they were asked by BN deputy chief for Selangor Noh Omar and BN’s Selangor coordinator Mohd Zin Mohamed to support the candidates that Mr Najib puts up for the 22 Parliament and 56 state seats at stake in Selangor.

The Parti Keadilan Rakyat also held a rally last night where about 2,000 people turned up despite a drizzle.

Opposition figurehead Anwar Ibrahim, who was the star attraction at the rally, said the BN was “at a disconnect with the people”. Speaking in Malay, he said: “UMNO leaders are blind with both their eyes and their hearts — they don’t know the hardship of the people. I’m making promises … but why is Najib making promises when he is the Prime Minister? He should just be doing (things instead).”

In the previous elections in 2008, political parties were allowed to campaign officially for 13 days. The results were described as a political tsunami, with the opposition coalition, Pakatan Rakyat, capturing five states. The BN won 50.27 per cent of the popular vote, while Pakatan took 46.8 per cent.