Deputy Umno president Datuk Seri Najib Razak says that BN’s Datuk Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh has more than 50-50 percent chances of winning. But every time he said that in the last few days he also added the caveat “if we continue to work hard”. Indeed he is everywhere in the constituency frenetically rallying BN campaigners and party workers not to relax but to double their efforts to ensure that the parliamentary seat does not fall to PAS.PAS leaders say the same thing, that their candidate, Wakaf Mempelam assemblyman Abdul Wahid Endut, has more than 50-50 percent chances of snatching away Kuala Terengganu from the BN. In fact PAS director of the by-election machinery, Datuk Wan Abdul Mutalib Embong, backed his forecast by saying that it is also an assessment made by the police and the military. Other leaders talked of caveats too, mostly the usual ones, but Wan Mutalib told reporters: “My only worry is that the presence of so many policemen may frighten the voters while encouraging many hantu to come out to do mischief.” He did not say whether by hantu the meant devils or phantoms.
Unlike in Permatang Pauh when it was obvious who the winner was going to be on nomination day itself, and most people --- including officials --- were happily and openly saying so without fear of losing their credibility, almost all in Kuala Terengganu seems shy of predicting the outcome of tomorrow’s polling.
When pressed for their opinion most BN component party members would turn away but those few who were willing to make a prediction would warily say that Wahid has a strong chance of winning, albeit narrowly, but they would be happy to be wrong. But unlike them some Pas members are not really shy of saying “Insyaallah our party candidate will win if …” and they will go on to intone the caveats mentioned by their leaders at the various ceramahs and rallies.
Focus is now back on the personalities of the two main contestants --- little media glare is on the third candidate, independent Azharudin Mamat, who is also actively campaigning --- after a frenzy of debates mostly on national, and even international --- especially Israeli atrocities in Gaza, issues.
After almost two weeks of speaking, shaking hands, attending kenduri and funerals and sleeping only for a few hours each day, Wan Farid and Wahid are noticeably tired and worn out as they shuffle from one function to the next. PAS, backed by its two Pakatan Rakyat partners of PKR and DAP, has accused the BN of all kind of abuses and perceived failures to dissuade the voters from voting for the ruling coalition again.Even rumours about alleged unfair treatment of the late MP, Datuk Razali Ismail, by the BN, Umno and Wan Farid were exploited so as to win over some or all of the family members, relatives, friends and supporters of the former deputy education minister. The BN has mobilise members of its federal cabinet, almost all of its Umno, MCA and MIC leaders to counter all the allegations even as it pours in all kinds of ang pows and election lollipops to the various communities in Kuala Terengganu.
It is also appealing to all of the 80,229 voters to turn up to vote especially the out-of-state Chinese voters who are reluctant to return for the purpose as they would have to return again for the Chinese new year only about a week later. It knows that it will benefit from a large turnout and better if it is more than 82.45% recorded for the March 8 general election.
As for the late Razali, never have a former deputy education minister been so honoured. He will now have a school and an institute named after him. Will all this be enough to tilt the balance in Wan Farid’s favour? Will the two visits of prime minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi help?
Wan Farid was said to be behind the more folksy and campaign-wise Wahid on nomination day --- 42% to 58%. Those doing the assessment say that support for him has inched up since then and on Wednesday it was 48% to 52%. And this probably accounts for the flurry of SMSes campaign, targeted at fence sitters, that it does not matter if Wahid is returned as it will not affect the state government or significantly reduce the strength of the BN government at the federal level. The response was “why not elect Wan Farid as after all Wahid is already a wakil rakyat”.
Targetted at the 9,300 or so Chinese voters are messages that to vote for BN would only make it, especially Umno, feel that it is strong and therefore would not embark on steps to reform itself.
“It is still not unreasonable to expect Wahid to win by a majority of about 2,000 votes,” said a PKR leader, Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim, on Monday.
But Wan Farid may just have already crossed the 50% mark.
source:theSun
Still I'm doubtful, probably its the other way round. Lets kick BN out..........
Read here and here.
cheers.
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