Sungai Bakap polls a referendum on Penang govt, say observers
Voters unhappy with state administration over wide range of local issues.
(The Vibes) – PAKATAN Harapan’s (PH) loss in the recent Sungai Bakap by-election was not entirely due to the federal government but rather the failure of the Penang state government for not addressing local issues, political observers said.
They told The Vibes the defeat was a referendum on the Penang state government led by Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow rather than Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s administration.
Ilham Centre executive director Hisomuddin Bakar said while voters, especially non-Malays were unhappy with the removal of the diesel subsidy, they were also disgruntled with the state government for not solving local issues such as the water crisis in the state.
“Development in the area is not progressing. There is now an indication that Sungai Bakap would be turned into a developed area but the state government has yet to fix the water issue which has been a problem for many years.
“They have been the government since 2008 but local issues are still a problem such as the water crisis. Combined with federal issues, voters decided to go against the state government.
“The sluggish economy also played a part in the defeat of the unity government,” Hisomuddin said.
Last week, Chow conveniently blamed the loss on a host of national issues, from replacing the blanket diesel subsidy with a targeted model, to inflation, all adding to a perceived increase in the burden on the people.
But other factors also affected the outcome of the by-election, where an estimated 64% of voters turned up at the ballot box.
The low Chinese (22% of voters) and Indian (17%) turnout was a telling factor on Chow’s administration, which was entrusted to deliver the non-Muslim vote. The Malay electorate (59% of voters) was handled by PKR, Umno and Amanah.
