The Malaysian Insight

SANDAKAN folk must deny Pakatan Harapan the federal seat as a response to the government’s failure to keep its election pledges, Najib Razak said while on the stump for Parti Bersatu Sabah candidate Linda Tsen, tonight. 

The former prime minister said the government, which just turned one yesterday, is known for making convincing promises with no intention of keeping.

“We want to punish them. They have cheated the rakyat,” Najib said.

“If they had won and kept their promises, I would accept that they are truly a solid government. 

“But if they had won the polls by cheating, the people must rise up and fight against them,” he told a crowd of more than a thousand people at the Taman Harmoni low-cost apartment, near Mile 3 Sandakan. 

PBS and Sabah Umno leaders were also present.

Najib’s appearance is the final highlight of the PBS campaign to win the Sandakan by-election tomorrow, after PH sent forth most of its top leaders in a series of ceramah over two weeks.

According to Najib, DAP is known for its tricks, and after a year in power in Pakatan Harapan, they had nothing to show in resolving the bread and butter issues of Malaysians. 

He said the prices of goods continue to rise after GST was abolished and replaced with the SST; the ringgit continues to weaken; and many development projects have been cancelled while the Pan Borneo Highway project has been delayed.

PBS is seen as the underdog in the race for the Sandakan federal seat, but it has the full backing of the Sabah opposition made up of United Sabah National Organisation, Umno, PAS, Parti Solidariti Tanah Airku and Sabah Progressive Party.

About a kilometre away in Bandar Lee Tat Jaya, Sabah’s ruling party Warisan and its allies Pakatan Harapan are also holding the grand finale ceramah, which has also drawn a massive turnout.

PH’s star attractions tonight include Economic Affairs Minister Mohamed Azmin Ali, Transport Minister Anthony Loke, Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng and Sabah Chief Minister Mohd Shafie Apdal.

PH by-election candidate Vivian Wong of DAP is also present. She is the daughter of the Sandakan MP, Stephen Wong Thien Fatt, who died in March. 
 
Some political pundits are convinced DAP will retain the seat; others believe  PBS will cause an upset. The second is because of the absent Chinese voters who have not returned home to vote.

DAP has turned to ally Warisan to woo the Malay voters in the constituency. 

Shafie in a speech had blamed Sandakan’s economic woes on the former Barisan Nasional government, of which PBS was a component. 

He said many businesses had wound up because of the bad policies of the previous regime. – May 10, 2019.