MUAR voters showed up in droves for the highly-publicised, but cancelled, debate between Barisan Nasional incumbent Razali Ibrahim and his challenger, Bersatu’s Syed Saddiq Abdul Rahman, at the Muar Traders Hotel tonight.

The debate had been called off earlier today after Johor police chief Mohd Khalil Kadir Mohd said police would not approve a permit for the event due to security concerns.

Razali then announced that he would only debate Syed Saddiq behind closed doors, adding that the “discussion” would be live-streamed from the district officer’s house.

“We can have a harmonious discourse without any ruckus,” said Razali.

Last Tuesday, Syed Saddiq challenged Razali to a debate, to which Razali agreed.

Despite the cancellation of tonight’s event, Syed Saddiq turned up to loud cheers from the more than 100 people who had gathered at the hotel’s banquet hall before 8pm.

Syed Saddiq, who aims to unseat three-term Razali, addressed the crowd and gave two speeches before announcing that he accepted Razali’s invite for a closed-door discussion. – May 6, 2018.