ANSARI ABDULLAH, BATU SAPI : I NEVER WIN, BUT I NEVER STOP SERVING THE PEOPLE OF SABAH
BATU SAPI, Oct 30 – On the stump for PKR in one of the party’s more shaky by-elections to date, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has urged Batu Sapi folk to ask for “double the rations” of Barisan Nasional’s (BN) election “bribes”. The PKR de facto leader (picture) said that PKR was not out to compete with the ruling coalition’s massive election machinery but wanted to change the people’s mindsets instead. “We have to anticipate that (BN’s large machinery). I think in all our speeches, we say, please accept. Please ask for more.
“In fact, we said, please ask for more because this is the one by-election when you are going to get it and the next round will be in the next [general] election. “So please ask for double the ration because of inflation, the higher cost of living,” he told reporters here, smiling. Anwar however urged the people to use their vote wisely come polling day this November 4 by selecting PKR’s Ansari Abdullah as its representative in the parliamentary seat. Batu Sapi folk, he added, needed to learn the lessons from voters in states like Selangor, Kelantan and Kedah who were brave enough to make a change in government.
“We want to tell them (Batu Sapi voters) that there is nothing wrong with you accepting handouts from BN but use your vote wisely because it is after all, secret ballot,” he said. Anwar admitted that in the past, PKR’s campaign tactic was merely to attack the BN and its unfair policies. “And then they would come along with all their bribery and the people take it and feel indebted to vote for them. So I say, take it but vote wisely,” he said. Anwar had hit the Batu Sapi campaign trail with PKR’s Ansari yesterday but received less than rousing response from the local folk.
The Malaysian Insider reported this morning that several villagers in Kampng Gas had admitted that they were more favourable of BN as the ruling coalition was generous with its handouts during the elections period. In his speeches however, Anwar told voters that there was nothing wrong with accepting election sweeteners from BN but it would be a grave mistake to vote it into power. “If you are tired from work and hungry, go to the BN election camps and ask for food. If you are out of money, go to them and ask them for money. But give your vote to PKR,” he had told villagers in Kampung Gas and Kampung Lupak Meluas last night.
Today, he said that voters should pay close attention to what the BN had done for Sabah during its rule. “Look at the bridge incident with Ansari. It was good, in a way, not good that he fell but good because of the effect of the incident. This is not a question of one bridge in one kampung. “But everywhere we travel here, people say – Datuk, be careful of that hole, Datuk be careful of that broken plank. This is the risk the people face, even after 50 years of independence and revenue from timber in the billions... you cannot even build one bridge? I think you only need one or two huge logs to rebuilt all the wooden pathways in Kampung Gas,” he said. Anwar was referring to yesterday’s incident when Ansari took his second tumble since the start of the campaign period after a bridge collapsed in the village.
PKR elections director Fuziah Salleh, who was also at the press conference along with several other Pakatan Rakyat leaders, noted that in the past, the people of Sabah voted for BN merely out of habit. “They were used to it. But we want to tell them now that they will not stand to lose anything if they vote for the opposition. “In fact, they will get more than just the election sweeteners from the BN,” she said. Such handouts, she added, only came during the elections. “But in the five years that the BN governs, the people are left abandoned,” she said. Meanwhile, Anwar reiterated his view that PKR was likely still trailing behind in the race for Batu Sapi.
He however said that PKR had made plenty of inroads so far and would work round the clock to change its fortune. “One thing about things here in Sabah is that the contest is not so intense. The people, although there are many who are yet to support us, still keep open minds. “We went to visit them and they were friendly to us. They can see our ways and that we do not give promises, we tell them what we have done. Hence, I see a greater potential,” he said. Selangor Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim, agreed and added that the people of Sabah could use the examples set by the Pakatan Rakyat government in Selangor.
“There may be three choices in this by-election, between BN, PKR and Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP). I have explained however that the only ones that have track records are BN and PR. “SAPP has no record, not even if you take into consideration the fact that SAPP candidate Datuk Yong (Teck Lee) was the chief minister for two years,” he said. Yong is also vying for the Batu Sapi seat, along with PKR’s Ansari and BN’s Datin Linda Tsen Thau Lin. “PR in Selangor has only governed for less than three years and we already showed our capabilities. We do not wait until the elections to deliver promises,” he said. ~malaysianinsider.com~
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