MALAY voters in Sg Kandis should use the by-election to send the new Pakatan Harapan federal government a clear message by voting for Barisan Nasional, said Mahdzir Khalid and help right developments that are “disturbing” to the community since May 9.

The newly minted Umno vice-president said the Malays appeared to have been collectively possessed by demons by voting PH in the 14^th general election.

“On May 9, the Malays ‘masuk hantu’ (possessed). Their degree of anger towards BN was too great. So they voted for PH, and BN fell.

“But since then, they have seen things that are not right… things that are disturbing to them, regardless of whether they are in BN, PAS or PH,” the Padang Terap MP said.

“The other side has been talking of demoting Jakim (Islamic Development Department) from a ‘jabatan’ (department) to a ‘bahagian’ (division), closing tahfiz schools and recognising the UEC and rights for the LGBT.

“And these have not even been made into policies yet,” he said, adding that the right result would send a signal to PH.

The former education minister was speaking at a discussion titled “Betapa ruginya perpecahan” (how wasteful is the division) aired live on Umno Online.

The discussion was in conjunction with the ongoing Sg Kandis by-election campaign in Selangor. 

The by-election on August 4 will see a three-cornered fight between Lokman Noor Adam (BN), Zawawi Ahmad Mughni Zawawi (Pakatan Harapan), and Murthi Krishnasamy (independent).

The Sg Kandis state seat fell vacant after Mat Shuhaimi Shafie died on July 2 from lymphoma.

Mahdzir was referring to the government’s decision to review Jakim, former information minister Zainuddin Maidin’s proposal to shut down tahfiz schools, the PH pledge to recognise the Unified Examination Certificate (UEC) taken by private Chinese high school students, and the recent call to end discrimination against sexual minorities.

Mahdzir and fellow panellist Selangor Umno information chief Megat Zulkarnain discussed the split among the Malays, which they said cost BN the federal government on May 9.

PH won 121 out of 222 federal seats to form the government in Putrajaya. BN, ousted for the first time in 61 years, won only 54 seats only to lose three more when the Umno MPs quit the party soon after GE14.

Mahdzir said people were also seeing PH making U-turns and excuses for not being able to fulfil some of its election pledges.

He said he believed that PAS supporters in Sg Kandis would support BN because they, too, wished for Malay unity.

Megat added that the Sg Kandis by-election should serve as a “wake-up call” because the people, including PH supporters, are not getting the “better government” they were hoping for.

“The by-election results won’t change the government. It only adds one more PH rep or one more BN rep in the state assembly. But the implication is a wake-up call.”

Mahdzir said Umno should not be called racist just for defending the rights of Malays and Bumiputeras as provided in the federal constitution.

“If we don’t defend our own race, who will?” he said, adding that Umno did not riot or quarrel with other races.

He said other races also fought for their own rights, like the Chinese who demanded private schools and the UEC. 

“It is just that we Malays dominated the political arena. But now, it is dominated by others under the PH government…The Malays didn’t think about this in all their anger (against BN).” – July 27, 2018.