TWO Sunday-night ceramah illustrated just how big a difference the PAS vote can make in the Cameron Highlands by-election, and the party’s activists are working overtime to ensure support does not swing Pakatan Harapan’s way.

The ceramah were not just a duel between the different views on Islam in the political landscape but they also reflected how PH’s chance of winning is dependent on the way PAS members vote.

The ruling coalition had set up a mobile vehicle stage in a small square in Felda Sg Koyan 1 and invited two independent preachers and rising star Nik Omar Nik Abdul Aziz to talk about Islamic leadership principles. About 100 people filled the chairs in front of the stage.

A minute’s walk away, PAS and Umno leaders were on a stage set up in a parking lot at Sg Koyan’s main junction.

The crowd, which included young men on motorcycles and tudung-clad middle-aged women who sat on mats on the ground, was 30 times the size of the turnout at the PH ceramah.

Although the audience also comprised Umno folk, Pahang PAS commissioner Rosli Abdul Jabar said a majority are the Islamist party’s supporters and voters. And PAS intends to make sure that the turnout translates into votes for Barisan Nasional.

“We have to ensure that 90% of our supporters back the BN candidate. The Umno vote is solidly behind BN, but because PAS is not contesting this by-election, PH thinks it can get our supporters to vote for it. We are the deciding vote in this by-election,” said Rosli at Al-Hidayah, a PAS “markas” (base) in Sg Koyan that serves as its main headquarters for the polls.

“PH is going around repeating the same lies to PAS supporters that were told in the 14th general election, that it’s true that PAS accepted RM90 million from Umno because we are now working with BN. So, we have to put a stop to this, and that’s why we are going out to campaign,” said the Tanjung Lumpur assemblyman.

‘Opposition solidarity’

In GE14, PAS got 3,587 votes in Cameron Highlands, of which 2,351 were from the Jelai state seat.

BN retained Cameron Highlands by 597 votes in the elections on May 9 last year. If PH can swing a quarter of PAS’ supporters this time around, the pact has a better shot at victory.

The by-election, to be held on Saturday, is contested by BN’s Ramli Mohd Nor, M. Manogaran (PH), and independents Sallehudin Ab Talib and Wong Seng Yee.

PAS has decided to sit out the polls in the name of “opposition party solidarity”, said Rosli.

“PAS feels that we need to strengthen the voice of the opposition in Parliament, we need more opposition MPs so that we can provide checks and balances to the government.

“This is why we decided that our party will support the BN candidate. But this does not mean that we support BN. It is possible that in future by-elections, we will field a candidate against BN. Our cooperation is temporary and on a case-by-case basis.”

Since PH derives much its strength from Cameron Highlands’ non-Malay voters, most of whom are in Tanah Rata, its only hope of winning is if it can increase its support among Malays and Orang Asli in Jelai, said Rosli.

Among Jelai’s Malays, this means shifting PAS support to the ruling pact.

Rosli said PAS has met or contacted half of its 3,000 supporters to tell them to vote for Ramli.

Although the machinery is being deployed at only a quarter of the strength reserved for a PAS candidate, it is clear that the party is pulling out all the stops to reach its supporters.

Activists from 14 PAS divisions in Pahang are camping out at operations posts in Jelai and Tanah Rata. Each day, sorties leave these bases and visit supporters at their houses, while another team contacts outstation PAS voters to persuade them to return and cast their ballots.

So far, the party’s state chapter has reached out to 600 of these voters.

“We operate like an election campaign, but we only go for our supporters and members. We don’t campaign among Umno or PH people. We don’t put up flags, but we go on door-to-door visits,” said Rosli.

“Our aim is to get 90% of our supporters in Cameron Highlands to vote for BN. We are confident of reaching this target in the next few days.” – January 23, 2019.