NEWSFLASH for politicians: it may be tempting to play the religious and race cards ahead of the 14th general election but in recent surveys showed that voters were more more concerned about bread-and-butter issues, such as the rising cost of living and GST.

Analysts interviewed by The Malaysian Insight said, given the discourse by senior Umno and PAS leaders in recent months over RUU355 and the fight for the Malay vote, they expect scare tactics and fear-mongering to be part of the staple in the run-up to GE14‎‎.

“They can attempt to use sentiments to win support and divert attention but it is still unclear whether this will actually translate into votes at the ballot box,” said Dr Redzuan Othman of the Darul Ehsan Institute (IDE).‎

Redzuan said issues related to the cost of living, rising price of goods and good governance would determine how people voted.‎

“All three issues garnered more than 50% of votes from respondents in a recent survey,” said Redzuan, who is also Universiti Industri Selangor vice-chancellor.

Some 2,018 respondents took part in the survey, which was done between February 8 and 13.

The poll also found that 78% of respondents did not agree with the implementation of the goods and services tax, introduced by the Najib administration in 2014.

About 73% of respondents also did not agree with the continuation of the GST even if it is a significant source of revenue for the country.

Both PAS and Umno have ramped up their rhetoric over the past months, as speculation grows that the general election may be called this year, as early as September.‎

Umno has attempted to brand the four-party Pakatan Harapan as being under the thumb of the Chinese-majority DAP. This strategy is aimed at playing on the fears of the Malays that a vote for a PH candidate could result in diminished Malay political power.

PAS has attempted to strengthen its Islamist credentials by moving through a bill, known as RUU355, to amend the Shariah Court Act, seeking stiffer punishments for Muslims caught fornicating or drinking alcohol.

Discourse on RUU355 has divided Muslims and non-Muslims, the latter who fear that the proposed legislation is a back door to the implementation of the Islamic penal code (hudud).

The IDE findings chimed with a survey conducted by Invoke, a non-profit organisation and research outfit founded by Rafizi Ramli, the Pandan MP.

According to its survey, 10.4% of respondents will vote based on RUU355 while 54.3% who intend to vote for PAS have no idea about the act.

In fact, 70.1% or 30,173 Malay-Muslim voters have no knowledge about RUU355 while 19.5% who do know about RUU355 said religion was not a deciding factor.

The Invoke survey was done in March 2017 among 43,030 Malay-Muslim respondents, who were asked if RUU355, ahead of the bill’s tabling on April 6, would have a bearing on how they voted in GE14.

For Mohamad Hisomuddin Bakar of Ilham Centre, racial and religious rhetoric could have an effect on rural voters, who are already inured to the rising cost of living.

“Rural folk are also less exposed to new information compared with city dwellers. Rural voters are used to suffering so they are not too swayed by arguments concerning living costs.

“So, they are more likely to vote according to sentiment,” said the centre’s executive director.

His arguments are borne out by the fact that PH parties, which campaigned on a message of reform and good governance, won in nearly all urban and suburban areas in the 13th general election.

Umno, on the other hand, carried most of the rural vote. – April 20, 2017.