GEORGE TOWN: Perikatan Nasional, specifically its component party PAS, has been on the back foot in the Sungai Bakap polls despite being the incumbent party.
When Abidin Ismail was named as its candidate, PAS deputy president Datuk Seri Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man said “he was ISO14001-2015 certified” despite the fact that the certification is only for companies and statutory bodies.
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Tuan Ibrahim was actually referring to the logistics company Abidin used to work for before the latter became the special officer of the late Sungai Bakap assemblyman Nor Zamri Latiff last year.
The blunder, captured on video, has punctured Perikatan’s momentum, causing Abidin to publicly apologise. The 56-year-old’s academic record was also compared to his rival Dr Joohari Ariffin of Pakatan Harapan, a former educator with a PhD from Universiti Sains Malaysia.In the lead-up to nomination day, there was talk that Joohari’s strong academic credentials would give Pakatan an edge.And soon after nomination, Abidin was seen as being slow off the block after he and his team did not inform press members of his campaign schedule.
It was as if Abidin shunned the limelight; journalists practically had to hunt him down to keep the public informed of his campaign.
In short, it’s not all smooth sailing for Perikatan, which is facing a well-oiled Pakatan and Barisan Nasional machinery in its quest to prove that its “green wave” is still strong in Penang.
Perikatan managed to capture Sungai Bakap from Pakatan by a 1,500-vote majority in the simultaneous state elections last year.
Umno has 5,105 Umno voters in the area, according to Barisan chairman Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, who pledged that the coalition will get as many of them to back Pakatan.
Cabinet ministers have also descended on the constituency, including Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail and Deputy Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives Minister Datuk R. Ramanan, both of whom met the Indian community, who make up 17.39% of voters and could tip the scales in the contest.
But despite the advantage of being in charge at both the Federal and state levels, Pakatan and its Barisan allies still have a lot to do to win over Sungai Bakap voters.
Many complain of cost-of-living issues, alongside the daily problems of low water pressure, dry taps, congested roads and floods.
Some feel that the diesel subsidy rationalisation could hurt their pockets and believe that the 3 sen drop in egg prices mostly benefit hawkers as well as large cake and ice cream factories.
They also demand sincere engagement from an elected representative who maintains a constant presence, not one who only appears during elections.
It’s still anybody’s game at this juncture, and it will be interesting to see whether Perikatan will successfully defend the seat where 40% of voters are non-Muslims.
Veteran political observers say that overturning a previous 1,500-winning majority is not a herculean task, adding that it will not be surprising if Pakatan manages to pip Perikatan at the finish line – this time around, by a whisker.
