Politician speak “The results show that the people have the full confidence in our two leaders. It is also a sign that voters, especially the Chinese and Indian [Malaysians], have now returned to support [the Barisan Nasional (BN)].” “My win is due to a combination of factors. People are now back with BN. They are […]
Negeri Sembilan
Winning the next elections
By Wong Chin HuatTHERE are three ways to understand the stunning outcome of the Bagan Pinang by-election: Najib, Isa and the Pakatan Rakyat (PR). If you believe that the Barisan Nasional (BN)’s victory is really about Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s 1Malaysia, then you would have to accept that Tan Sri Mohd Isa Abdul Samad and the money politics […]
The myth of Malaysian diversity
By Shanon ShahHERE’S a statistic to think about: the nine by-elections since the March 2008 general election have seen a total of 36 candidates contesting. Only two, or less than 5.6%, of these candidates have been women. The two were L Sarala, who contested in the record-breaking Bukit Selambau by-election in April 2009, and Aminah Abdullah, who […]
The Bagan Pinang victory
By Shanon ShahAFTER losing in all of the by-elections it has contested in the peninsula since March 2008, the Barisan Nasional (BN)’s Bagan Pinang win must taste like ambrosia. The BN’s candidate from Umno, Tan Sri Isa Samad, polled 8,013 votes against the 2,578 votes garnered by PAS’s Zulkefly Omar. In fact, Isa’s majority of 5,435 votes […]
All eyes on Bagan Pinang
By Shanon Shah
BAGAN Pinang initially awakened to light thunder and a drizzle on 11 Oct 2009; the kind of Sunday morning that is made for sleeping in. But today is polling day, the culmination of a week of bizarre and occasionally sluggish campaigning by both the Barisan Nasional (BN) and Pakatan Rakyat (PR). It is a tense […]
Campaigning in Bagan Pinang
By Shanon Shah
FROM day one, the Barisan Nasional (BN) has been pulling out all the stops in its Bagan Pinang by-election campaign. Sure, the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) managed to muster more than 4,000 supporters — more than double the BN’s — on nomination day. But since nominations closed, it is clear that the PR is struggling to […]
Zulkefly Omar’s dilemma
By Shanon ShahJOURNALISTS have been warning each other that Zulkefly Mohamad Omar, PAS’s Bagan Pinang by-election candidate, is not the world’s best orator. Unfortunately, this is true. At a PAS-organised ceramah in Taman Eastern on 5 Oct 2009, The Nut Graph observes that Zulkefly is ponderous in his speech. The chants of “Allahu akbar” that greet him […]
“Jalan-jalan cari undi”
By Shanon ShahIsa Samad poses at a Hari Raya Aidilfitri event in Bagan Pinang “THIS is part of my programme for the Bagan Pinang by-election: jalan-jalan cari undi,” says Tan Sri Isa Samad, 60, riffing off the popular TV3 food travelogue, Jalan-Jalan Cari Makan. The 3,000-strong crowd here in Taman PD Utama initially looks more interested in […]
High stakes in Bagan Pinang
By Shanon ShahCorrected at 1:50pm, 5 Oct 2009 Outside the BN headquarters in Bagan Pinang prior to nomination day on 3 Oct “IF the Barisan Nasional (BN) loses, it will be catastrophic,” Umno Youth chief and Rembau Member of Parliament Khairy Jamaluddin tells The Nut Graph in a phone interview. Talk about high stakes. But he is […]
Ninth by-election to be called for Bagan Pinang (Updated 7.25pm)
Updated 7.25pm on 4 Sept 2009 SEREMBAN, 4 Sept 2009: Bagan Pinang assemblyperson, Azman Mohammad Noor, of Barisan Nasional (BN) died this afternoon at the Seremban Specialist Centre. He was 54. The death of the BN incumbent means that Malaysia will likely see a ninth by-election since the March 2008 general election. Azman’s son, Hairol […]
