(Media Conference Statement in Teluk Intan on Monday, 19th May 2014)
Unlike the Bukit Gelugor by-election nomination a week ago, when the entire Barisan Nasional leadership and not just the MCA leaders, ran for cover for fear of getting a “drubbing” in the Bukit Gelugor by-election on May 25, there has been a show of force of the UMNO/Barisan Nasional leadership in the Teluk Intan by-election today with the Deputy Prime Minister and UMNO Deputy President, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin leading the team.
Why the stark difference?
The reason is very obvious. The UMNO/BN leadership is supremely confident that DAP has made a “fatal error” in fielding Dyana Sofya Mohd Daud and that the BN candidate, Datuk Mah Siew Keong, Gerakan President, is set to win the Teluk Intan by-election on May 31 – reasons why the Umno/BN leaders dare to show their faces as compared to the Bukit Gelugor by-election nomination last Monday.
In fact, the UMNO/BN leadership believes that they can deliver the DAP/Pakatan Rakyat a major blow in the Teluk Intan by-election, as they will be able to attack what they regard as the DAP’s “Achilles heel” among the Malays, Indian and Chinese voters in Teluk Intan.
In the 13GE last May, DAP secured the support of 25 per cent of the Malay electorate, who comprise 38% of the electorate.
UMNO/BN believes that in an intense attack of lies and falsehoods against both the DAP and Dyana, they will be able to ensure that the DAP will not even be able to maintain the level of Malay votes DAP secured last year.
DAP leaders have been falsely vilified as anti-Malay, anti-Islam and even being communists, and the vicious personal attacks on Dyana, based on lies and falsehoods especially on the social media, have started even before she was officially announced as the candidate for Teluk Intan.
The BN attack on the Indian voters, who comprise 19% of the electorate, will be equally intense, especially with the “Minister’s card” played by Mah, promising a cornucopia of money for development and projects.n Already MIC have declared that it could ensure that support of 75% of the electorate.
The BN attack on the Chinese electorate will be no less intense – with the “Minister’s card” and promise of cornucopia of money for development and projects, as well as the politics of gratitude to Mah for his past services as State Assemblyman and MP for the area.
Furthermore, there will be an extra card, that the Chinese must vote for a Chinese and not for Dyana, a Malay candidate.
This is all politics of the past, the politics of race which Malaysians must break away if we want to introduce the new politics where politics is based on Malaysian identities rather than communal identies.
For these reasons, the DAP has a very uphill battle, and I will rate the DAP’s chances of winning Teluk Intan by-election as 40% to 60%.
Pakatan Rakyat parties must reach out to the Teluk Intan electorate in the next 12 days of the by-election campaign to explain why they should prove the UMNO/BN leaders wrong and that 57 years after Merdeka in1957, it is time for the voters to vote as Malaysians and not as Malays, Chineswe or Indians, and the qualities of an MP is not whether he is a Chinese, Malay or Indian, but whether he is a Malaysian who stands firmly for a just, united, democratic, harmonious, prosperous and competitive Malaysia.
The battle in Teluk Intan is a battle between the future and the past, the new vs the old, the politics of Malaysian nationalism against the politics of race.
Mah hopes that the people of Teluk Intan will help save Gerakan, which has been totally rejected in its founding state in Penang.
I call on the people of Teluk Intan to save Malaysia rather than to save Gerakan, for the people of Teluk Intan must “write history and create miracle” a second time in two decades to show the way for all Malaysians the direction to save Malaysia from becoming a failed and divided state.
Can the people of Teluk Intan raise the stakes of the DAP candidate from the present 40% to over 50% in time for a victory in athe May 31 by-election polling?
This is the challenge for the people of Teluk Intan to rise up to the occasion to vote for the country’s future.
Teluk Intan people are like the Taiping people.They are typical Malaysians who like to take calculated risks.And a sure win is betting on a young, smart, hardworking and educated lawyer with lots of potential. Nobody wants to back a tired horse with two straight losses and soon to add another loss to total three straight losses.
In California,USA there is a local California bred horse costing it’s owners less than 15k named California Chrome.
This Cal bred horse has already won the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness winning millions in purse money.And in the process has beaten the very well bred colts costing their owners millions of dollars.
Dyana is like the Cal bred horse and Mah is like the million dollar colts.So voting Dyana to be the next MP of Teluk Intan will be an easy choice for the voters.
Although Mah is from Gerakan, his loss will be more painfully felt by Umno than by Gerakan.Because Umno being blinded by leaders who cannot see or think straight take for granted that Malays dare not tread or ventured into DAP territory.And in the process they lost a young and talented lady with lots of potential to the DAP.And many others too with more on the way.These cannot see or think straight blind leaders will be licking their wounded pride for a very long time to come.
Bruno,
Mah can go and feed horseys la! I don’t care if he doesn;t wanna take up senatorship. Come on as if no GLC posts dishing out to these jokers. Tell me Abdul Ghani also get cushy cushy job what