Ties with PAS unaffected by Galas, says Ku Li

 

GUA MUSANG, Nov 4 — Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah has declared that his relationship with the Kelantan PAS state government would not be affected despite the Barisan Nasional (BN) win in Galas today.

The Kelantan prince said he has always maintained a good relationship with all politicians.

“I have a good relationship with all political leaders. Whether they are from PAS, DAP and PKR,” the Gua Musang MP told reporters after the announcement of the Galas by-election results where BN’s Abdul Aziz Yusoff defeated PAS candidate Dr Zulkefli Mohamed by 1,190 votes.

“That is democracy. We don’t only have to debate formally, but also privately to address the people’s problems,” said the politician popularly known as Ku Li (picture).

Ku Li was appointed BN’s Galas election director by Datuk Seri Najib Razak amid concerns that the party veteran would throw his support behind PAS.

The former Petronas chairman has been vocal in supporting the PAS-led Kelantan government’s demand for oil royalty from Putrajaya, and had become a virtual outcast in his own party.

Throughout the Galas campaign that started on October 26 Ku Li was also subjected to personal attacks and accused by PAS of neglecting the Orang Asli voters and of vote buying.

However, he said his strategy of mounting a low-profile campaign had worked and called on the BN leadership to adopt his strategy.

“I hope the top leadership will follow our method here so we can create a harmonious campaign environment. Rallies will only cause congestion and raise security issues,” said Ku Li.

The former finance minister had discouraged public rallies and preferred the campaigned to be run by branch leaders at the respective polling districts.

Ku Li also urged the government to lift restrictions on the local media to allow the opposition to adopt the same strategy.

“After 53 years of independence, let us use television, print media and alternative media to present our views. There is no need for ceramah or public rallies because the coverage of television and radio is wider.

“To strengthen democracy, this is the best way. There is no need to curb the freedom of newspapers,” he added.