Observations from the by-election
Tay Tian Yan, Sin Chew Daily
The Sungai Limau by-election in Kedah did not present much surprise to everyone. PAS retains the state constituency probably as a tribute to the late menteri besar Azizan Abdul Razak.
This could also be a universal mentality in the Malay society to show respect to the elderlies. While the contributions of the late MB were disputable, his sincerity, candidness and amicability definitely won him great acclaims in the state. And this has helped consolidate PAS’ support base.
One unique thing about PAS in the Malay rural areas, especially in the northern and eastern regions, is that most of the party leaders have succeeded in building up a good rapport with the grassroots.
Ideologies aside, PAS leaders are also known for their relative incorruption, religious devoutness and amicability, allowing them to easily earn the trust of local residents. And also because of this, it is hard for Umno to completely thrash the party no matter how hard it has tried.
In the Sungai Limau by-election, for instance, although BN dumped in a good deal of money to run the electoral campaign, it has still failed to unseat PAS from its stronghold.
Indeed BN has succeeded in halving PAS’ majority, but the outcome is still very obvious. PAS has won by over a thousand votes.
No one could have been more disappointed than Mukhriz and his father Mahathir.
As the commander-in-chief of the campaign war, Mukhriz has to swallow the responsibility of defeat. He received endless support from both the state and federal governments while he himself has vowed to adopt the constituency if BN were to win the election. Unfortunately, his effort was not reciprocated by the constituents, marking yet another setback in his political career.
Along with his failure to clinch the Umno vice presidency in the recent party elections, it appears that disaster strikes more than once for Mukhriz. Although this will not immediately impact his political future, within the short to medium term his prospects will not look any better than this for sure.
His father is equally frustrated with the result. He visited the constituency personally to show his support for BN’s man there and as an old Kedahan, he was pinning his hope on his presence to help BN through the tough race.
But the old man does not enjoy good reputation there, and his influences have been significantly weaker than anticipated.
