As expected, BN with all the government funds (read: taxpayers hard-earned money) and the machinery at its disposal romped home with a bigger win in the hotly contested Ijok by-election.

It's back to the drawing board for the opposition parties. One thing for sure, never expect the simple-minded rural folks to be taken in with tales of corruption, abuse of power, the Mongolian woman murder case and kickbacks on arm purchases, as at the end of the day bread-and-butter issues will win votes and those who can deliver such goodies wins.

It looks like Christmas comes early for Ijok and Machap voters as the death of their incumbent state assemblymen have made their districts the envy of other voters. Who doesn't want tarred roads, new mosques and drainage and other amenities?

Will this victory sound the death knell for PKR under Anwar Ibrahim's leadership or hasten the government in calling for early elections to take the winds out of the opposition parties' sail. PKR will have to rework its strategy as harping on the wrongdoing of the present leadership does not go down well with the rural folks whose only goal is to see peace and security in this country and better standard of living for their community.

We have also see how the mainstream media have slanted their news in favour of the BN candidate while demonsing PKR's and thuggery by Umno's version of Hitler 'black shirts' - those Mat Rempits whose terrorise and even injured supporters of the opposing team.

We can only pray that there are pockets of voters who can see through the hypocrisy of the present regime - which is inundated with scandals - and vote them out of office. What the country doesn't need now is a new set of unemployed politicians who are self-serving and only warm their seats in the august house until the next polls.