KUALA LUMPUR – Support for Barisan Nasional (BN) and the federal unity government in Kedah is seen to be increasingly encouraging, as the coalition has managed to penetrate several locations previously considered as “black areas”.
Kedah BN chairman Datuk Seri Mahdzir Khalid said a positive aura is being increasingly felt in view of the friendly welcome residents have given candidates and their aides.
According to him, the opposition’s enthusiasm in talking about the wave said to be in their favour clearly does not reflect on the excitement of BN’s welcome at every event attended.
“In the 15 seats BN is contesting, the momentum of support seems to be increasing. There is an aura that the people wish to see the state return to BN.
“We know they hope for a wave like what happened in the 15th general election last November but despite all that, we see that there is momentum on this side (BN),” he told the media while campaigning in Pedu today.
His comments were reported by Getaran, the Malay-language sister portal of The Vibes.
Mahdzir, a former menteri besar of Kedah, is the BN candidate for the Pedu state assembly seat in the Kedah election on August 12.
He said that BN’s hard work in reaching out to the people may be the catalyst for the positive development.
“All this is possible because we work hard to approach the people below.
“In Kedah, we consider ourselves the underdogs because we are going against the party that was previously the state government,” he said.
In the same meeting, he also expressed confidence in the wisdom of the people of Kedah to choose candidates who can work over populists.
“Service records are of course taken into account, and if votes are made on the basis of populism, it is not certain that we will be able to achieve what the people want,” he said.
In a related development, Mahdzir also reminded the BN machinery and supporters not to be influenced by the antics of their opponents who use abusive words in speeches and other campaign activities.
“There is no need to use harsh language or want to rebut their words. For example, Datuk Seri Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor used the words ‘aku sepak satgi’ (I will kick him in a while) when he spoke earlier, which was directed at me,” he claimed.
He was referring to Perikatan Nasional’s elections director and caretaker menteri besar for Kedah.
“That is up to him but our culture is not like that. There is no need to answer back, instead we focus on the voters and we are confident that the people of Kedah will make a wise choice,” he said. – The Vibes, August 4, 2023
