PAKATAN Harapan’s (PH) use of two different logos in the recent state elections caused it to lose its non-Malay voters, independent research firm Ilham Centre said.

“Chinese voters, in particular, saw that as a sign that PKR was not united with PH,” Ilham Centre director Hisommudin Bakar told a forum in Universiti Malaya today.

He said that PKR’s decision to use its own logo showed how it failed to understand its own voters.

Ilham Centre chief researcher Prof Mohd Yusri Ibrahim said the pollster was surprised to see PH repeat the same mistakes it made in the Malacca elections last November at the Johor Polls.

“In Malacca, we found that many of PH’s voters did not accept party hopping and did not want the party to field such defectors.

“But they did it anyway and lost badly.”

In Johor, Yusri said the mistake was repeated with the logo issue. 

“Though small to some, the use of two logos (PH and PKR) showed that the coalition was split.

“This is completely against what their voters want. PH was so naive in this issue.”

Yusri, who is a lecturer at Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, explained that the PH voter profile was different from Barisan Nasional’s (BN).

“PH voters are critical, reform-minded and independent, and the use of two logos was like an act of betrayal,” he added.

In Malacca, PKR had fielded former chief minister Idris Haron in Asahan, while Amanah put Nor Azman Hassan in Pantai Kundor. 

Both were former Umno assemblymen who had withdrawn their support for chief minister Sulaiman Md Ali, causing the government to fall. 

As a result, PKR lost all the 11 seats it contested while Amanah won one out nine. DAP, which did not take in any party defectors, won four out of the eight it contested. 

Citing issues with the PH brand and that its own logo was more popular, PKR used its own logo again and won just one out of the 20 seats it contested in Johor. 

Amanah and DAP, which used the PH logo, won 11 out of the 30 seats it contested.

Ilham Centre today presented its survey findings and analysis of the Johor elections earlier this month where BN won 40 out of 56 state seats. 

Ilham Centre fellow researcher Prof Hamidin Hamid said PKR has lost its influence as the lead party in PH.

“PH has to go back to the drawing board again to find the right answers. When we spoke to Malay voters, they said that PKR lacks leadership.

“Although PKR has Anwar Ibrahim, but he’s tested and tired. Pakatan needs new blood,” the Universiti Malaya lecturer said. – March 23, 2022.