GEORGE TOWN – The Melaka election will largely be a contest to judge coalition performance and voter sentiment over the “betrayal” of the four assemblymen, said Amanah vice-president Datuk Mahfuz Omar.
He told The Vibes that the majority of voters will not be bothered about whether PAS is working with Umno or Bersatu, but how the ruling coalitions have performed since the 2018 general election.
“Voters will be asking themselves who made their lives better.”
He added that it remains to be seen if voters will “forgive” the party-hopping over the years that led to the current fluid political situation.
“Owing to their lust for power and greed, they (party-hoppers) caused an entire nation to suffer as the political imbalances created a poor initial response to managing Covid-19, leading to the loss of lives and economic hardships.”
While Barisan Nasional failed to retain the state in 2018, Pakatan Harapan lost it during the Sheraton Move early last year.
Although the snap polls this year were not triggered by the “Melaka 4”, PH component parties have soundly rejected former DAP man and now Pengkalan Batu incumbent Datuk Norhizam Hassan Baktee.
For voters, PH will present candidates from PKR, Amanah and DAP while Barisan Nasional (BN) linchpin Umno is looking for a clean sweep.
Mahfuz also pointed to Perikatan Nasional, which took over from PH last year at the federal level, blaming it for triggering Covid-19 clusters during the Sabah snap polls.
On coalition performance, he sided with his coalition, saying PH largely fared better in Melaka.
He said this before disclosing that Amanah will reveal its nine candidates tonight.
PH will maintain its previous formula of eight seats for DAP to contest, nine for Amanah and 11 for PKR.
Mahfuz hopes that the Health Ministry and the Election Commission will be fair in ensuring that campaigning standard operating procedures are adhered to, taking lessons from the Sabah election that took place in September last year.
The Melaka election was triggered after four assemblymen cited their loss of confidence in the leadership of Umno’s Chief Minister Datuk Sulaiman Md Ali. – The Vibes, November 5, 2021
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