The long wait for Kajang polls

An analyst says people are being given more time to gripe about PKR's choice of Anwar.

PETALING JAYA: The Election Commission’s choice of March 23 for polling in Kajang is uncommon in that the date is just five days short of the legal deadline.

The law requires a by-election within 60 days of a seat being vacated. In Kajang’s case, the seat will be vacant for 55 days.

The practice has been to have by-elections at the earliest date possible. For example, the Kuala Besut by-election was held 28 days after assemblyman Abdul Rahman Mokhtar died and the Sungai Limau polls 39 days after Azizan Abdul Razak died.

Political analyst James Chin of Monash University said the delay would give people more time to voice their dissatisfaction with PKR’s choice of Anwar Ibrahim as its candidate.

“More and more complaints will be made against Anwar,” he told FMT.

Asked to comment on speculation that the delay may have something to do with the Court of Appeal’s proceedings in the sodomy case against Anwar, Chin said BN was doing a “stupid thing” if it had influenced the Election Commission into delaying the polls for this reason.

“It will backfire,” he said.

“If Anwar is found guilty, PKR will put a replacement candidate, and that candidate will win by a landslide as there would be massive sympathy for PKR.”

The government has appealed against last year’s High Court acquittal of Anwar and the Appeal Court is set to hear the case on Feb 12 and 13.

Chin also said the by-election was a “complete waste of time” and BN “should simply give Anwar a walkover.”

But another analyst, Khoo Kay Peng, said BN had the democratic right to choose whether to field a candidate or not.

“However, even if BN does not field a candidate, I am sure other candidates will contest in the by-election,” he said.

He agreed with Chin that there is no significant connection between the sodomy case and the fate of the by-election. If the Appeal Court were to find him guilty, he said, Anwar would have to face the music whenever the by-election would be held.

However, he acknowledged that if PKR were forced to replace Anwar as its candidate, it would be frustrated in its alleged purpose for forcing the by-election—to depend on his political savvy to resolve the dispute between Menteri Besar Abdul Khalid Ibrahim and PKR deputy president Azmin Ali.