The Malaysian Insight

THE Johor elections will not end up like the Malacca and Sarawak polls, Liew Chin Tong said, adding the ground is shifting by the day and supporters have begun to acknowledge what a big Umno victory will mean to Malaysian politics.

The Johor DAP chairman told The Malaysian Insight that while it’s true that the opposition had begun on a weaker footing compared to Barisan Nasional when the elections were called on January 22, it is slowly catching up.

The former deputy defence minister was sizing up the competition in Johor after more than a week of campaigning.

Liew, who was one of the masterminds behind the opposition’s Johor campaign in the 2018 general election, said the southernmost state was different and could not be compared to Malacca where Umno/BN made an almost clean sweep.

“In Malacca, it was very bad from the start and it never improved. But Johor voters are different and Pakatan Harapan in Johor is also different,” said Liew, who is standing in Perling.

He said PH was better organised in the southern state and many voters were genuinely angry about the unnecessary state elections triggered by BN.

Liew said he believed that voters knew the snap polls were held to fulfill the greed of certain individuals.

“Worse still, a big win here will aid Umno in its quest for more snap elections, whether in Kedah, Perak or at the national level.”

He said this was a situation tht everyone was keen to avoid amid a Covid-19 pandemic and a still-recovering economy.

No easy win

After massive victories in Malacca and Sarawak, Liew said many, including BN, were expecting Johor to be another easy win.

But the former MP for Bukit Bendera and Kluang said BN had underestimated Perikatan Nasional, PH and voter sentiments.

“As a result of the (stringent Covid) SOPs and pandemic concerns, BN has but a slim advantage over everyone else. Like us, they have problems getting their message to the 700,000 newly registered voters due to the restrictions.

“This is a general problem faced by everyone,” said Liew.

The only advantage BN had, said Liew, was its 500,000 base voters.

But that base was being eroded by PN in the urban areas, said Liew.

For all that Umno had said about PN chief Muhyiddin Yassin, Liew said the latter had some support in the state due to his Johor roots and brief tenure as prime minister.

“But what PN has gained is not at the expense of PH, but BN. As such, BN may not find it so easy in the south.”

Like BN, Liew said PH had its core supporters and although some were unhappy with the pact, they were unlikely to back PN or BN.

“We are, however, unsure whether the support for PN will translate to seats. The extra 700,000 new voters make it very difficult to predict the final outcome.”

Although polling is just days away, Liew said PH still had a slim chance of beating BN to win the state.

“Many believed that PH’s win came from the numerous ceramah at the 14th general election (GE14). But in fact it was the peer-to-peer campaigning that helped us.

“If we can regain some of that enthusiasm, we may well win this,” said the former senator.

Going into the Johor elections, BN is defending 16 seats, PH 27 and PN 12.

In the 2020 Sabah elections, BN and PN turned the tables on Warisan Sabah, winning 38 out of 73 seats.

 

This was followed in November by a crushing BN victory in Malacca where it took 21 of the 28 seats.

Less than a month later, Gabungan Parti Sarawak registered a landslide victory in Sarawak, sweeping 76 of the 82 state seats.

The Johor elections is the first to enforce Undi18 and automatic voter registration. A total of 2.5 million people are eligible to vote on March 12. – March 8, 2022.