Anwar pivots to home ground to stem opposition march in PH strongholds of Penang, Selangor

PETALING JAYA / GEORGE TOWN - Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim spent the last weekend before six of Malaysia’s 13 states go to the polls on Aug 12 in his Pakatan Harapan (PH) strongholds of Penang and Selangor, seeking to fend off an

assault by the opposition Perikatan Nasional

(PN) to make inroads in these two western states.

The Prime Minister postponed a visit to Terengganu – controlled by PN’s largest outfit Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS) – on Sunday to focus on three urban seats in Selangor where Malays, seen to be swinging towards PN, make up the largest bloc of voters.

Officials across the divide have indicated that Selangor’s Hulu Kelang and Bukit Antarabangsa – close to the iconic Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur – as well as Taman Medan in Petaling Jaya are “50-50” and could go either way.

“What’s the difference between now and before? We are trying our best for the people. They (PN) asked, ‘Seven months in power – what did you do?’ They were in government for three years, what did they do? Get contracts and siphon; get projects and take commission,” Datuk Seri Anwar told more than a thousand people at Taman Medan on Sunday evening.

In contrast, the opposition’s two biggest names, former premier Muhyiddin Yassin and PAS chief Hadi Awang, made no public appearances on Saturday, with the former taking the weekend off after launching his coalition’s manifesto for Selangor on Friday night. Tan Sri Hadi headed to Negeri Sembilan on Sunday, the third state currently controlled by PH.

Mr Anwar has repeatedly talked up the possibility of winning four of the six states – defending the three held by PH and

wresting Kedah

in the north. But he has in recent days stressed the importance of ensuring that Penang and Selangor, the most industrialised economies in Malaysia, stick with his unity government to ensure seamless policymaking and cooperation between the administrations of these states and federal power.

“If you make a mistake in voting, you will end up becoming like Kedah. Make another mistake, and you will become like Kelantan,” he had warned Selangorians in rural Tanjong Sepat last Tuesday.

While he did not expound on his comments, they were likely aimed at the lack of economic development in the two PN-governed states. Many of his speeches since the campaign began on July 29 have centred on claims of attracting billions in investment, in contrast to the racial rhetoric espoused by his opponents since he took power eight months ago.

“You decide who you want to be the government. If you play with the votes, they (PN) will win and our country will be ruined,” he said to thousands in Ayer Itam, Penang, on Saturday, while donning a vest in the alternating red and blue, respectively, of his PH and key ally Barisan Nasional (BN), which are campaigning together for the first time after decades of bitter enmity.

“What has PN done in their states? They think they are clean, so clean until they are in court?” he added, referring to the

graft cases

that the likes of PN chief Muhyiddin and Wan Saiful Wan Jan, a supreme councillor in Muhyiddin’s Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia, are facing.

Also speaking in Penang was Deputy Premier Zahid Hamidi, who is himself

fighting 47 counts

of graft. The support of his Umno-led BN is vital to the unity government’s long-term stability, in terms of not just controlling Parliament, but also legitimacy among the Malay-Muslim majority.

However, studies and projections from various parties show that Malay support for Umno is

likely to slip even further

on Aug 12 compared with last November’s general election. BN

had suffered its worst result,

limping home with just 30 MPs in the 222-strong Parliament, well behind PN, which took the lion’s share of the Malay vote to win 74 federal seats.

“Selangor is no longer a PH-Umno fixed deposit. The trust deficit is widening,” Selangor PN chief Azmin Ali told The Straits Times, when commenting on Mr Anwar’s decision to campaign in Selangor for the second time in a week instead of heading to Terengganu as planned.

Slated to return as chief minister should the opposition triumph in Malaysia’s richest state, Datuk Seri Azmin said it was clear “the wave of discontent has reached even the urban areas of Selangor, where voters have lost faith in the federal government’s ability to fix the economy and to honour its promises of structural reform”.

His opponent Juwairiya Zulkifli in Hulu Kelang is also his former aide, and she noted on Sunday that PH chief Anwar’s visit could be a game changer in “a stiff race”. She also revealed that the Premier would also spend the eve of the vote in Selangor.

Some rally attendees, especially Malays, shied away from fully endorsing Mr Anwar and his allies. But Penang housewife Annie Lee, 47, said she could accept the PH-BN alliance as what is key is to “keep the country stable, improve our economy and bring down the cost of living”.