PENANG’S caretaker chief minister Lim Guan Eng urged people not to place bets on the ongoing 14th general election, saying that voters must not gamble on the future of the country.

Lim said in Penang, there are bets placed on Pakatan Harapan losing eight to 12 state seats in the polls on May 9.

Penang has 40 state seats. In the last elections, DAP won 19, PKR (10) and former ally PAS (1) while Barisan Nasional took the remaining 10.

“Losing a minimum eight to 12 seats means the possibility of (PH) losing power. Don’t gamble. Don’t treat our opponents lightly. 

“Look at nomination (yesterday). They cheated. They will cheat. The people must make sure to come out and vote,” he said after a mega-ceramah in George Town yesterday.

PH is contesting 39 seats this election – minus the BN-held Penaga – following the disqualification of its candidate, Yaakob Osman, whom the Election Commission declared a bankrupt.

Several other PH candidates nationwide were disqualified during nomination yesterday. Among them were PKR vice-president Chua Tian Chang (popularly known as Tian Chua), who was barred from defending his Batu parliamentary seat on the grounds of a RM2,000 fine imposed by the Shah Alam High Court.

Another PKR candidate Dr Streram Sinnasamy also could not contest after he was denied entry into Dewan Sri Rembau to submit his nomination papers for the Rantau state seat on the grounds that he was without his EC pass. That gave BN’s candidate, the caretaker Negri Sembilan menteri besar Mohamad Hasan, a walkover. – April 29, 2018.