Political opponents confident of victory in by-elections
Both the Barisan Nasional and PAS today expressed confidence that their respective candidates will win the upcoming Anak Bukit and Pendang by-elections in Kedah.
BN information and security chief Badruddin Amiruddin told malaysiakini that the ruling coalition stood a high chance of winning in both constituencies based on house-to-house surveys conducted.
"We have about 70 percent chance of winning based on the surveys we conducted," he said in a telephone interview.
Badruddin said the party's ceramah (public lectures) have also been well attended by supporters.
"The prime minister (Dr Mahathir Mohamad) was visiting both places yesterday. The deputy prime minister (Abdullah Ahmad Badawi) is also still around," he added.
Asked about newspaper reports of aggressive campaigning in the north, Badruddin, who is also the Kedah state assembly speaker, criticised PAS supporters for behaving like "hooligans".
"The PAS people have been more aggressive because they do not practise democracy well," claimed Badruddin.
Thursday is polling day for the by-elections which are straight figh
ts between the BN and PAS.
BN's Othman Abdul (left) and PAS' Dr Mohamad Hayati Othman are vying for the Pendang parliamentary seat while BN candidate Zakaria Said and PAS' Amiruddin Hamzah are fighting for the Anak Bukit state seat.
High confidence level
Contacted by malaysiakini today, Amiruddin (photo) maintained that on all accounts, the opposition party is likely to retain both seats.
"Our confidence level is getting higher based on the feedback from the voters we met. Rest assured we will retain the previous majority, possibly with an improvement," said the Anak Bukit contestant.
In addition to retaining the late PAS president Fadzil Mohd Noor's victories at 16 of the 21 polling districts, the party expects to win at another one or two districts, added Amiruddin.
According to him, the ceramah by acting PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang last night attracted a large crowd.
"I attended for a short while but the place was full of people and the roads were blocked with cars."
Amiruddin also dismissed allegations that PAS supporters were intimidating and harassing Umno campaigners.
"This is the BN type of campaign. They are doing exactly what they are saying (others are doing). We have told our supporters to maintain their discipline. It is not in our culture to resort to tactics like we saw during the Indera Kayangan (Perlis) by-election," he said.
The PAS candidate added that although the party's campaigners have not met with problems with the police, other methods are being used to check on their activities including the deployment of helicopters.
"Helicopters are hovering over the area with their spotlights on. It is unbecoming and does not serve any purpose. It's a waste of government and public funds," said Amiruddin of the air patrols during the past two nights.
The two Kedah seats fell vacant following the demise of Fadzil on June 23.
The by-elections are crucial for BN which has seen its dominance in the Malay-majority state of Kedah threatened by PAS.
In the 1999 general election, PAS captured eight out of the 15 parliamentary seats and 12 of the 36 state seats in Kedah.
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