PETALING JAYA: The 15th General Election (GE15) will change the political landscape, pitting Pakatan Harapan’s new culture against Barisan Nasional’s traditional one, says Datuk Seri Masidi Manjun (pic).
The Sabah Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia deputy chief said the political mood has changed.
“GE15 will determine whether the new political culture started by Pakatan can be sustained, or whether the country prefers to go back to the familiar pre-GE14 era.
“It will also determine the future of fragmented political forces and alliances. A new political landscape could emerge thereafter,” he added.
One of the hot topics that will be heavily debated in GE15, said Masidi, will be the economy that was ravaged by the Covid-19 pandemic over the last two years.
“The global pandemic has lowered our economic resilience.
“Many have lost businesses and even more people have lost their jobs. Parties that can articulate better their recipe for economic recovery will have an edge in GE15,” he added.
Masidi also said the upcoming national polls will see youths voting on issues, rather than parties.
“The young are not exactly interested in becoming members of any political party. Many would probably be swayed by ‘what’s in it for me’ expectations.
“Expect more independent candidates vying for seats and some may actually do well in affluent urban constituencies,” he said.
Umno deputy president Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan stressed the importance of reaching out to voters who don’t belong to any political party.
“They are looking at issues and how well we explain them. We must present our policies well to the people,” he said.
Mohamad added that following the implementation of Undi18 and automatic voter registration, there will be over 5.8 million new voters.
“This will make a lot of difference. We are no longer working around our traditional voters.
“Umno and Barisan have to go out of its comfort zone and tackle this group of voters,” said Mohamad, adding that party grassroots members must not be complacent.
After the 14th General Election in May 2018, PKR had 50 MPs in the then Pakatan government, followed by DAP (42), Amanah (11) and Bersatu (26).
The “Sheraton Move” in February 2020 saw Bersatu exiting the Pakatan coalition and 11 MPs quitting PKR, and coupled with Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s resignation as premier, led to the collapse of the Pakatan government after just 22 months.
Perikatan Nasional – which comprises Bersatu, Gerakan, PAS, Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) and Sabah STAR – formed the next government with Barisan, and Muhyiddin became prime minister.
After just 17 months in power, Muhyiddin tendered his resignation in August last year after a group of Umno MPs led by party president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi withdrew their support for him.
