UMNO’S talk about its chances of wresting PKR stronghold Permatang Pauh is just hot air, said opposition leaders, who are not convinced that most of the 8,000 new voters that Umno claims to have registered would ensure Barisan Nasional wins the seat.

PKR vice-president Nurul Izzah Anwar said anyone who read up on polling data would know that claims of a surge in confidence in BN were nothing but “hopeful posturing”.

Nurul Izzah said registering voters did not equate to confirmed votes, adding that Malaysians would remove the allegedly corrupt federal government if polls were conducted in a free and fair manner.

She said Malaysia was more than simplistic election projections based on racial lines, with voters clamouring for real economic opportunities and an accountable government.

People in Permatang Pauh, as well as the rest the country were aware of the government’s bullying tactics and withholding of development in opposition-held constituencies, she said.

“We have also seen numerous BN stalwarts leave the coalition and many others ready to do the same, taking their voters with them.

“The ruling party (Umno) is more nervous than ever. They are dealing with an open rift in their party, from the top to the ground, and have no strategy to create a sustainable, prosperous future, and equitable access to opportunity for all Malaysians,” Nurul Izzah told The Malaysian Insight.

Umno’s division chief in Permatang Pauh, Mohd Zaidi Mohd Said, told the media on Sunday that the electorate in the parliamentary constituency had increased from 72,000 in 2015 to more than 80,000 now.

He said most of the new voters were Malays registered by Umno, indicating a good chance of the party finally wresting the seat from PKR, which won Permatang Pauh with a 8,841-vote majority in the 2015 by-election.

Zaidi said Umno’s survey showed that the BN lynchpin party could take 67% of votes in the constituency, adding that the party’s other advantage was PKR’s loss of former ally PAS’ strong rural election machinery following their split in May.

‘Psy war’ and perception

Penang Pakatan Harapan (PH) election machinery chief Mustapha Kamal Mohd Yusoff has questioned Umno’s claim, asking how sure the party was that the new voters would support it, given that PKR, too, organised weekly voter registration drives.

“This is their ‘psy war’ (psychological warfare),” he said, adding that voters today were capable of making informed decisions when it came to who to cast their ballots for.

“We won’t waste time with Umno’s claims. We have been working since the last polls, while Umno started closer to the election. We know the pulse on the ground.

“Besides, an increase in voter numbers is common before elections, with new voters signing up and others being transported from different seats.”

Youth will support PAS

PAS’ Permatang Pauh election machinery director, Amir Hamzah Abdul Hashim also doubts Umno’s claims of having the support of the more than 8,000 new voters.

“That is just their perception. A survey by Umno will surely be favourable to Umno.

“To PAS, the possibility of wresting the seat is still 50-50,” he told The Malaysian Insight.

Amir said while Umno registered voters, PAS had registered hundreds of new members, comprising mostly youth, in Permatang Pauh.

“The number is under a thousand, but it is an indication that youth in Permatang Pauh are supportive of PAS, which promotes ‘tarbiyah’, Islamic values and faith, unlike those who resort to political games and hanky-panky methods.”

Worries about phantom voters

While PH parties have been suspicious of updated electoral rolls nationwide, Nurul Izzah said she would not comment on the legitimacy of any particular voter registration without evidence.

“But, I think BN’s history of voter fraud and unconstitutional interference in fair elections speaks for itself,” said the PKR election director.

She acknowledged that PH was worried about legitimate voters being removed from electoral rolls and phantom voters being included.

“Our challenge is not fair competition, but phantom voters in corrupted electoral rolls and the numerous cases of election fraud we have seen over the past decade.

“We welcome the registration of legitimate voters. Our only hope is for our work to not be compromised by further illegal and unconstitutional moves by the Election Commission and ruling BN government.”

Nurul Izzah said if BN expected to see credibility in the election process and its results, there should be independent election monitors for the coming polls.

“Without it, a repeat of election tampering (will occur and) will undoubtedly result in the erosion of confidence in the government, legal action and widespread protests by the rakyat.”

On losing the support of the PAS election machinery in Permatang Pauh, she said PH’s machinery, which now includes former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s Bersatu and PAS splinter party Amanah, was ready for the fight.

She said the coalition hoped that the PAS leadership would see the need for opposition parties to work together in the name of justice and unseat a corrupt kleptocracy.

Permatang Pauh fell to the opposition in 1999 after its incumbent MP, Anwar Ibrahim, was sacked as deputy prime minister and jailed in 1998.

Since then, the seat has been held by PKR president and opposition leader Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, who is Anwar’s wife, except between 2008 and 2015, when Anwar returned to politics.

He is now serving time for sodomy. – August 8, 2017.