CAMERON POLLS | Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail admits that chances of Pakatan Harapan winning in the coming Cameron Highlands by-election on Jan 26 are slim as BN is harping on issues pertaining to local sentiments.

The deputy prime minister also said the by-election would be a tough fight, as the opposition had fielded an Orang Asli person as its candidate.

"Well, we have always had difficulty before we came into the government. 

"But it is a little more difficult now because they are playing up local sentiments. I met them (the Semai people) recently. Of course, this difficulty is part of the contest.

"And what we offer, at least if they vote for us, is good enough," she told reporters after launching the Malaysia Positive 2019 Convention in Putrajaya today.

Wan Azizah, the Harapan president, was commenting on the chances of its candidate M Manogaran winning the four-cornered fight with BN candidate Ramli Mohd Nor and two independents.

She added that Manogaran's chances were good because of the change in government at the federal level.

'We have to be careful'

Wan Azizah was also asked if disciplinary action would be taken against PKR senator Bob Manolan Mohd, following claims that he allegedly threatened a group of Orang Asli village chiefs in Cameron Highlands recently. 

The PKR advisory council chairperson said she had spoken to Bob Manolan about the incident, and he insisted that was not what he meant.

“On disciplinary action, I will leave it to the new president Anwar Ibrahim. But we do not agree with him (Bob Manolan) making threats. 

"We have to be careful with what we say,” she said.

When asked to comment on photographs of a woman wearing a Harapan T-shirt who was seen giving out money in Cameron Highlands, Wan Azizah urged the reporter to check the authenticity of the photographs and the claims.

“Really? You can wear the T-shirt and hand out (money) and have a photograph taken. So, you need to go and check further. 

"But we have already told our staff not to do anything against the law in an election."

Earlier, in her speech at the launch of the convention, Wan Azizah said the failure of a government stems from its inability to identify and adopt the right position with the people.

She said a direct result of the spread of false information was that it led to doubts among the people, increasing racial sentiments, and finally causing racial and religious disharmony.

“One of the outcomes of a positive mind is the ability to sieve through information. There is a lot of false information on social media. 

"We should learn from the May 13 incident and we do not want a repeat of it,” she said.

- Bernama