By Zainal Epi - Free Malaysia Today
KUALA KUBU BARU: Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak led BN to a convincing victory in the crucial Hulu Selangor by-election deemed as a referendum on his government.
His presence in the sprawling constituency the last three days before polling gave the BN election machinery a badly-needed boost after the party was trailing PKR in the early rounds of the campaign.
Najib waded into the crowd and his personal charm and PR skills won them over. This is the first by-election where the prime minister led the charge.
The victory meant that Najib has regained the trust and confidence of the Malays, Chinese and Indians.
Najib had practically “camped” himself in the constituency, and went on his walkabout to hear the grouses and problems of the local people.
He showed his mettle when he led MCA leaders into Chinese areas where MCA campaigners had been “blocked” from entering. He convinced the largely sceptical voters of the sincerity of his government to help all races in line with his 1Malaysia concept.
At first, it was a downhill fight for BN when PKR went on the attack targeting local and federal issues.
Panic button
BN went into a defensive mode and was seen to be vulnerable. But it soon launched a furious personal attack on PKR’s candidate Zaid Ibrahim.
However, the character assassination tactic did not go down well with the voters, especially the Malays, and BN’s hope of winning dimmed considerably.
Some BN campaigners said Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin, who was the election director, had pressed the panic button too soon.
Just when spirits were flagging, former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad entered the fray, and together with Najib, went on to demolish the PKR defences.
On the eve of election, both Najib and Mahathir made a final pitch in Bukit Sentosa, with some 10,000 people in attendance. Nearby in Kuala Kubu Baru, PKR de facto chief Anwar Ibrahim pulled in about 20,000 spectators.
But unfortunately, Anwar's impressive show of force did not translate into votes.
For Najib, it was indeed a sweet victory and a recognition of his leadership since he took over in April last year.
No comments:
Post a Comment