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Khoo Kay Peng, political analyst
The election results don’t look good for new PM Najib; he doesn’t appear to have the people’s goodwill. If he wants to reverse the situation, he will have to start delivering on his promises. 2-1 is a good win for PR even though they had a lot of problems. The Bukit Gantang seat is the closest to a referendum of party leadership, especially since Najib was the chairman of Perak Umno and had engineered the power grab, so it reflects directly back on him. PR’s victories can be attributed to non-Malay support for PR, while BN was solely dependent on Umno supporters. In these results, it shows that BN’s component parties have not found a way to regain support Wong Chin Huat, political analyst at Monash University Sunway
The 2-1 result was expected. Najib did not show up as a positive factor; in fact, he may have made things much worse. In Sarawak, PR’s big loss showed that Anwar chose a bad candidate and needs to take full responsibility for it. This result does not bode well for the Sarawak state elections predicted to be called next year. It also proves that money politics still reigns. In Kedah, the 2,000-odd majority shows that even with a greenhorn like Manikumar, the electorate still votes for the party and not the candidate. Though people may not be happy with PKR, they are willing to give the same support. In Perak, Pas has held its ground. The attacks on Nizar as a traitor did not hold water; the people are angry that BN did not respect the rules of the game. It is interesting to note that PAS’s victory was delivered by non-Malay voters; they have now become third-largest Chinese-supported party in Malaysia. If this is indicative of a nationwide trend, BN can expect to say bye-bye to at least 95 seats in the peninsula in the next general elections. Dr Denison Jayasooria, political scientist at UKM
PR’s two victories indicates that there is a consolidation of voter and political power base in Kedah and Perak. In Bukit Gantang we see a sizeable rejection by the Malays towards BN despite the Najib and Mahathir factors. It could be said that this seat was a referendum of sorts specifically because Nizar ran. In Bukit Selambau, the rejection of the MIC by the Malays and Indians may become a permanent feature. Despite the release of the Hindraf detainees, we still saw Indian Hindus in PAS shirts, the defections of so many PPP members and the emergence of so many independent Indian candidates, which indicate that the Indian community is incredibly divided. BN has now lost four by-elections out of five since March 8, and this could be attributed to the mainstream media’s propagandist role, which doesn’t work anymore because people have become more mature in political understanding. PAS’s brand of religion is now more likeable and trustworthy than Umno’s. However, Najib cannot be blamed as he has just come into office. Give him two to three years to win the hearts and minds of the people. Prof Mohd Agus Yusoff, political scientist at UKM
The results show that BN has to stop being in denial and take action to reform itself. Najib’s announcement of reform is very significant, but it has not happened yet. The BN’s campaign machinery is still the same, very orthodox, still pampering people with material goods and food while slandering and attacking the Opposition. It’s more than announcing big projects, it’s about the politics of hope, which PR carries with them. The people see this. Clearly, the rakyat has made their point that the BN has to change. They are angry about the judiciary, the police, media freedom, government’s handling of the economic crisis and the well-being of the people.
Ben Suffian, Programme Director of Merdeka Center
For PR, their wins shows that their message, the cooperation of the various parties and its moderating effects are working. It also signals that voters want to see something concrete – tangible reforms, not just rhetoric.The results show that campaigning on ethnic nationalisation cannot win the BN the majority of Malay support. It needs more substantiative policies. Khaw Veon Szu, executive director of Sedar
It is quite significant to note that all three by-elections were won by increased majorities. BN's win in Batang Ai means that the “great wall” of BN politics is still there and PR has not managed to break through. BN's win in Sarawak is a setback to PR, especially to Anwar, who made a bad choice of candidate there. In Bukit Selambau, the big majority was surprising. Retaining this seat has stabilised the Kedah PR government and should stop rumours that Kedah will be the next Perak. Anwar made the right choice in fielding a newcomer with no “baggage”, who was PAS-supported and looked to win 40% of the Malay votes that way. In Bukit Gantang, a clear message has been sent that people are not happy with what happened to Nizar’s administration. Also, PR’s coordinated and consistent messages of democracy and justice helped; BN’s campaign strategy of bringing up the “derhaka” issue and the quoting of Quranic verses by a non-Malay backfired greatly.
Written by Melody Song & Lam Jian Wyn
Source: http://www.theedgemalaysia.com/highlilghts/3738-instant-reaction-2-1-for-pr-vs-bn.html
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