MUDA will hold a protest this weekend to object to the 15th general election being called during the monsoon season this year.  

Muda central executive committee member Nurainie Haziqah Shafii said the ‘Lives First Before Elections’ protest is set to take place outside the Sogo shopping complex on Saturday. 

“We are reminded of the massive floods that happened last November, December until January this year, where to date there have been no proper mitigation plans announced. 

“We, Muda, wish to clearly demand that no general election will be called this year,” she said at the party’s headquarters in Petaling Jaya today.  

Nurainie also chided Barisan Nasional chairman Ahmad Zahid Hamidi on his irresponsible remarks that BN was prepared to face the floods for their election campaign. 

“The remark was made even though Zahid and other BN leaders have full knowledge that floods will usually occur at the end of the year. 

“Such statements (by Zahid) do not in any way reflect the empathy of ‘Keluarga Malaysia’ as espoused by the prime minister,” she said.  

On September 17, Zahid said that despite the possibility of floods, BN was willing to go ahead with its election campaigning. 

He said should the election be held at the end of the year, the BN Youth machinery would be ready to provide assistance in flood-hit areas.  

Ketereh MP Annuar Musa said that Zahid’s remarks were misinterpreted.  

The communications and multimedia minister said the Umno president’s statement was actually referring to the preparedness of BN election machinery to face the polls in any given situation. 

Muda central executive committee member Afiqah Zulkifli said the government should make public any findings on weaknesses in existing flood response procedures. 

“The findings should not be kept exclusively within government meeting rooms, and instead should be shared with opposition MPs, civil society groups and the public,” she added. 

Muda vice-president Lim Wei Jiet said the public has a right to know the government’s short-term, mid-term and long-term response, as the matter is of national interest. 

Last week, Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob said Malaysians would not have to wait long for the announcement of the general election.  

He said people had to wait just a little bit longer as GE15 would be called after discussions with BN’s top five leaders. – September 21, 2022.