TAMBUN, Perak - The top contenders for the hot seat of Tambun, Pakatan Harapan (PH) chief Anwar Ibrahim and Perikatan Nasional’s (PN) incumbent MP Faizal Azumu, have engaged in a war of words via giant posters in the Perak constituency.

Here’s a guide to their billboard wars:

Ayor not ayaq

The word “ayor” first entered prominence in Malaysian politics when Tambun native Faizal explained in a Twitter video that was how locals referred to “air” or water in Malay, and not “ayaq” as how people in northern state Penang would call it.

He released the video soon after Penang-born Anwar announced his intention to contest in Perak for the first time. The “ayor not ayaq” poster was first seen by shopkeepers nearby in late October.

Never lost in Tambun

Around the same time the first poster went up, another billboard was informing drivers leaving Tambun and heading towards state capital Ipoh that Datuk Seri Faizal had “Never lost in Tambun”.

The billboard referred to the Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia deputy president’s victory in elections there, having won the Tambun Parliament and Chenderiang state seats in 2018 under the PH banner. It was also a reference to the Lost World amusement park, a well-known tourist destination in Tambun.

Anwar the “giant”

After his competitor’s posters drew eyeballs and much airtime during press conferences, Datuk Seri Anwar’s campaign team responded with its own billboards. One poster in support of the opposition leader in Gugusan Manjoi towered above the two-storey buildings in the area.

Accompanied by the words “From Tambun for Malaysia”, Mr Anwar’s larger-than-life poster played down his outsider status and promoted his campaign promise to serve not just the constituency but also the country if he became prime minister.

Responding to the “giant” posters, Barisan Nasional’s Tambun candidate Aminuddin Hanafiah, who has been less visible on the campaign trail, cautioned that the scaffolding for the posters could cause serious damage if it was blown away during the stormy monsoon season.

Godzilla?

Asked during a press conference about his rival’s poster campaign in Tambun, Mr Faizal feigned incredulity, saying he thought he had seen “Godzilla”. He also clarified that the posters supporting his campaign were not put up by him but by friends of his.

Whoever it was, they soon picked up on Mr Faizal’s sound bite and replaced the original “ayor not ayaq” poster with an image of the fictional sea monster, which said “Ingatkan Godzilla, chor” or “Thought it was Godzilla, bro”, adding the #ayorbukanayaq hashtag for good measure.

In answer to Mr Anwar’s posters, a “Size does not matter” billboard was put up by the PN campaign team, local media reported.

Mr Faizal confirmed the sentiment, telling reporters: “That is (Anwar’s) creativity. Fantastic right? If I had money to put up such huge posters, I would love to do it as well. But it’s OK, people in Tambun know me.

“He is not from here. So he needs to make his presence felt by putting up such posters.”

“Waste” of money

Summing up the billboard wars, BN’s Datuk Aminuddin said it was a waste and that the funds used could have been channelled to the people instead. He added that the victory that matters would come at the voting booth and not from the posters, Malaysia Gazette reported.