COMMENTARY, Feb 25 — The political atmosphere in Semenyih, where a by-election is ongoing, seems relaxed and calm today amid the hot and humid temperature, with voters going about their daily routine undisturbed.
As though weighed by political fatigue or an overdose of politics, the political hype of the campaign trail over the last 10 days seems to have come to an abrupt end today, just four more days to polling which is on Saturday.
With last night’s Premier League slugfest between Manchester United and Liverpool seeing locals and campaigners of political rivals sat stuck in front of gigantic TVs at mamak restaurants around town, the political atmosphere has calmed as campaigners take a break after a late night.
While Barisan Nasional (BN) keeps pounding its target day and night, Pakatan Harapan (PH) is taking things in its stride as it regroups and launch its final assault beginning tomorrow night.
PKR vice-president Zuraida Kamaruddin said she will be in Semenyih tomorrow night to continue the campaign along with other PH ministers to give the ruling coalition’s candidate Muhammad Aiman Zainali a final push.
Parti Amanah Negara (Amanah) strategic director and Health Minister Datuk Seri Dzulkefly Ahmad will lead several of the party leaders at a ceramah tonight, while DAP leaders have been campaigning in Chinese areas since last week.
Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (PPBM) president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin has been roaming the streets almost daily, accompanied by party deputy president Datuk Seri Mukhriz Dr Mahathir at times.
The ruling coalition has been on the defensive since the beginning of the race on Feb 16 and it still has a long way to go to get the Malay voters’ support which will determine the winning figure.
Its Malaysia Baharu slogan does not go down well with the Malay voters as the community feels short-changed and its policies made the Malay voters feel they are systematically sidelined, while at the same time, promises made during last year’s general election have yet to be fulfilled.
Furthermore, there have been talks of internal feud and politicking from within parties in the coalition itself as well as within PPBM which made PH’s campaign inconsistent.
BN seems to be on a final assault as the combined election machinery of BN and PAS push towards the finishing line.
Campaigning is to end on Friday midnight and as of today, PH is still fighting hard especially to counter the presence Datuk Seri Najib Razak, whose appearance appeared to take them by surprise.
Haunting the ruling coalition, Najib is making waves, attracting not just the voters, but the young ones who voted for PH last year.
Whether the overwhelming response to Najib’s act will be translated into votes is debatable, but the fact is he is the man voters wait to see and hear.
With four more days to polling, PH needs more than a good strategy; it needs probably a miracle to catch up fast.
