Be humble to touch voters’ hearts, Anwar tells Melaka election candidates

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 14 — Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim reminded Pakatan Harapan (PH) candidates in the Melaka state election to be humble if they hoped to win the hearts and votes of the constituents they sought to represent.

In the last week leading up to the polls, the PH coalition chairman said humility, patience and sincerity were the key attributes by which voters would judge the candidates.

“Candidates must be patient and humble when they go into the field, regardless if you are old or young. But if there is no humility, there is no sympathy. 

“It doesn’t matter if that person wears a BN shirt or a PAS shirt or a PN shirt, if we enter a restaurant, we have to be able to touch the hearts of everyone,” he said during the Tamu Anwar: Calon Muda Harapan event streamed live on Facebook today.

The Port Dickson MP said voters may not like candidates who appear too “aggressive”.

He said that politicians must also be close to the ground and not act as if they know better than the voters and their needs and the people politicians are supposed to work for. 

“One important thing in democracy is that we must not act as if we know better than the voters. 

“We must have the humility to accept the wisdom of the masses. They may not be able to debate on things like the Pandora Papers or global financial integrity, but they know the difference between wrong and right.

He said that most voters would think that all politicians are the same, but it is their job to persuade them otherwise. 

“People keep asking me, why continue trying to make headway into places where you know it is difficult and why haven’t we broken through yet. I tell them it is because we are not smart enough yet. 

“We still lack the patience, humility and resources to touch the hearts in those areas. So, we need to listen to them and their needs,” he said. 

Anwar also reminded Melaka voters that PH had a good record of maintaining everyone’s needs during its brief 22 months in power.

He said PH lawmakers just did not have the time to prove their worth.

“We have a track record. Yes, it is not perfect because our time was too short and the Federal Government did not provide full provision but what stands out on our record was that there was no abuse of power, bribery, stealing of sand and contracts. We did not have any of this. 

“In our country, this is our biggest problem,” he said. 

Pengkalan Batu hopeful Muhamad Danish Zainudin who is with the DAP said his party does not represent only one race but all communities regardless of their ethnicity.

“I’d like to quote Melaka DAP chairman Tey Kok Kiew who said that the most important part for him is that we must look after everyone. The Malays, Chinese, Indians, we must look after them all. 

“And in the 22 months that PH was in power, the feedback from the civil servants in the state government — who were mostly Malay — were very happy with him. This is because our principles are clear,” Danish said in the same virtual campaign programme.

Anwar reiterated Danish’s point of view, saying that it is in PH’s core philosophy to be all inclusive. 

“Yes, the chief minister is Malay, but the spirit of involving all races in its administration is something that stands out in Pakatan Harapan,” he said. 

Melaka will go to the polls in six more days. 

All 28 state seats are up for grabs.