The Penanti state seat in Penang may come under the Permatang Pauh parliamentary constituency which is a PKR political fortress but a victory for the party in the upcoming by-election is far from guaranteed.

To achieve a handsome win, the party will have to urgently find a cure for its self-inflicted political wound derived from the controversial ‘Fairus saga'.

lim guan eng koh tsu koon penang land scandal issue 220409 fairus khairuddin The resignation of incumbent assemblyperson Mohammad Fairus Khairuddin has not gone down well with many Penanti voters.

They are unconvinced that the resignation was justifiable and necessary to pave way for another by-election, the sixth in country since the 12th general election last year.

PKR now faces a big test to convince these doubtful constituents that Fairus made the right decision to quit, thus necessitating the by-election.

The party also needs to disseminate information to convince the sceptical Penanti constituents, many whom feel that PKR and Pakatan state government leadership had betrayed Fairus.

It's not going to be easy for PKR since some 30 percent of Penanti's 15,241 electorates, including PKR and PAS members, are said to be unhappy with the way the Fairus saga was handled.

The voters feel both PKR and Pakatan government leaders should have given Fairus more protection when the former DCM 1 was under attack from forces within the party.

This spells trouble for PKR since Umno too has a strong presence in the constituency.

The 30 percent sceptical electorates are the decisive voters in the by-election.

PKR and PAS each has some 3,000 members in the area, while Umno has some 6,000 members.

It's not mission impossible

Acknowledging this, Permatang Pauh PKR youth movement has mobilised its election machinery in Penanti to disseminate the correct information on events that led to Fairus' resignation and, to justify the party and state government action.

penanti state seat penang 200409 "Our youth machinery has been geared up to convince the people that Fairus needed to quit.

"We need to convince the electorates that the by-election was needed to elect a capable and strong PKR leader for a high position in the state government," said the movement's leader Amir Ghazali.

Fairus resigned as DCM 1 and relinquished his state portfolios effective April 8 after he was caught embroiled in a graft investigation by Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).

His official reason to step down as Penanti representative was that he wanted to pursue his education and spend more time with his family.

Local boy Fairus, who quit his Penanti seat on April 16, was alleged to have accepted bribes to cover-up illegal quarry operations in Penang mainland.

Yesterday MACC had cleared Fairus from all graft allegations, which would further weaken PKR's standing in Penanti.

"It's not a mission impossible, but surely a difficult task especially to convince the senior rural folks," Amir told Malaysiakini after chairing a Permatang Pauh AMK meeting on the by-election in Penanti last night.

gantang by election 050409 anwar and nizar dialogue with voters 01 Last Friday, PKR supremo Anwar Ibrahim told PKR members in Penanti that the by-election was needed for the party to elect a person with strong political background to assist Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng in state administration.

PAS wants to contest too

On another subject, Amir brushed aside the notion that PKR and PAS were at loggerheads over the right to contest the Penanti by-election under the Pakatan umbrella.

Amir stressed that the relationship and cooperation between the two parties and the other Pakatan partner DAP were ‘strong and constructive' at all levels.

"Difference of views and misunderstanding on certain issues are bound to occur in coalition politics. Everyone is entitled to his or her opinion and has the right to express it.

"That does not mean we are at loggerheads and breaking up," Amir pointed out.

He was responding to PAS intention to contest the Penanti state constituency on the behalf of Pakatan.

Delegates at last week's Permatang Pauh PAS division meeting unanimously passed a resolution urging the party to contest the by-election.

The division chief Omar Hassan claimed that Fairus' resignation and the manner PKR handled the issue has put the party at risk of losing the confidence of the people and Pakatan grassroots supporters.

"Hence, PAS is stepping in as a contender for the by-election to alleviate the situation," he said.

PKR, including its predecessor PKN, has contested Penanti since the 1999 general election.

Umno Permatang Pauh has a candidate

Meanwhile in a Bernama report, Deputy Prime Minister and Umno deputy president Muhyiddin Yassin was quoted as saying that Barisan Nasional was not afraid of facing anyone in any the by-election.

muhyiddin yassin interview 100309 03 He was responding to PKR's election strategist Saifuddin Nasution that BN was contemplating in not contesting as it was the ‘underdog'.

Muhyiddin also said that BN had not decided if it wants to contest in the by-election or not.

Last week Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak lashed out at the opposition for having their elected representatives resign for petty reasons and forcing by-elections to be held.

Najib had said that such by-elections were a waste of time and money, adding that the coalition would sit out of the Penanti by-election if it has the consensus of all coalition partners.

Umno is expected to discuss this matter at its supreme council meeting tomorrow.

While this being the situation, the Permatang Pauh Umno division said that it will be suggesting a name to Najib to contest in the by-election if the party decides to contest.

Division head Abdul Jalil Abdul Majid said the decision was made at a meeting last night.