Veteran journalist A Kadir Jasin has praised Gerakan and its president Mah Siew Keong for having the courage to contest in the Teluk Intan by-election unlike MCA which sidestepped the Bukit Gelugor polls.

"Bravo Gerakan for not running away from responsibility and for not shaming the grand old coalition (GOC)," he said referring to BN.

"Mah, salute you for having testicular fortitude! Itulah anak jantan (a true man). Unlike the sulking MCA, you are not abandoning your supporters," added the former New Straits Times group editor-in-chief in his blog.

Kadir (l eft ) said by not contesting in Bukit Gelugor, BN has given the impression that it is no longer a national coalition and will only contest in places where it stands a fair chance of winning.

"Or is MCA, despite being rejected by the Chinese, still mightily influential in BN that its every wish is fulfilled by the leadership of the GOC?" he asked.

In Bukit Gelugor, DAP strongman Karpal Singh had defeated the MCA candidate by more than 40,000 votes in the last general election.

The parliament seat fell vacant following Karpal’s death in an accident last month and his son Ramkarpal would be contesting in the May 25 polls, with pundits predicting an even bigger majority.

Whereas in Teluk Intan, the late DAP MP defeated Mah by slightly more than 7,000 votes for the parliament seat.

Deeper than her looks

This time around on May 31, the Gerakan chief would be facing Dyana Sofya Mohd Daud, whose good looks have turned her into an overnight sensation.

Commenting on this, Kadir said there must be something deeper than her looks.

"The fact that she is a young Malay woman representing a Chinese-dominated opposition party is, to me, the real fascination.

"There be must something particularly strong by way of push and pull factors to encourage a young Malay like Dyana, who hails from an Umno family, to join DAP and be an active member," he added.

While BN campaigners and their cybertroopers are having a field day maligning her, Kadir said they should perhaps spare some time to understand why this sort of things are happening.

"Why young educated Malays are joining DAP?

"Instead of blaming others for their woes, leaders of the GOC parties should look at themselves and not treat the rakyat with disdain," he added.

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