GEORGE TOWN – PKR vice-president Nurul Izzah Anwar has called on members of Pakatan Harapan (PH) components to heed signals from a political forecast that the coalition may fall short in the upcoming general election due to the lack of young voters participating.
The Permatang Pauh MP pointed to a survey by an online portal which concluded that if all voters aged 60 and above had voted in the last election, Barisan Nasional (BN) would have won it and maintained its hold in Putrajaya.
The election in May 2018 was won by PH, which then ruled over the country only until February 2020 when it collapsed due to defections during the so-called “Sheraton Move”.
Nurul Izzah noted the political survey’s finding that if all the young voters were to cast their ballots, PH would then earn a win by clinching over 100 parliamentary seats.
Hence, PH needs to gain support from the youths, who are the prime movers for change in the country, she said in her speech at a fund-raising dinner organised by Penang DAP here recently.
Nurul Izzah also said that the struggle to reform the country from the scourge of corruption, nepotism and cronyism may need more time due to the odds the reformists face.
Citing the classic literature Romance of the Three Kingdoms, she said excerpts from the story highlighted that victory over tyranny was only secured some 60 years after the first struggle ensued.
Hence, she said the coming 15th general election (GE15) and the previous are part of the long arduous journey forward.
Among those present were DAP veteran Lim Kit Siang, chairman Lim Guan Eng and secretary-general Anthony Loke. Also present were Amanah vice-president Datuk Seri Mujahid Yusuf Rawa, and Penang DAP chairman and Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow.
“We need to sustain the fight. Victory will not come easy but there is no option to give up. We must shoulder on," said Nurul Izzah, who recalled that she was just 18 when her father (now PKR president) Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim was first imprisoned.
Later, Chow explained that PH organises fundraising events because it cannot use public funds to manage its expenses for the election.
“We are ethical on this aspect. We know that public funds are meant for the betterment of the country and not for politics,” said Chow.
In his speech, Mujahid said that there should not be any identification of race or religion attached to corruption.
“There are corrupt Malays, Chinese, Indians and other minority groups,” he said.
“Our job as Malaysians is to fight all forms of corruption covering all races and religions. A wrong is a wrong if the country is to be restored to its progressive path.”
Loke said that the coming election is another opportunity for the people to correct the faults of relying too long on BN to govern the country until corruption has become rampant.
“I am confident that if the voters give us ten years we can do more than what BN did in 60 years because we will not be corrupt,” said Loke. – The Vibes, September 6, 2022.
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