YOURSAY | ‘Harapan should focus on holding on to its 30pct Malay support, and 80-95pct non-Malay support.’

Survey: Muafakat Nasional a hit with Malay, rural, lower-income and younger M'sians

Undecided: “More than half (53 percent) of Malay and bumiputera respondents preferred the opposition pact, while only 33 percent said they would choose Pakatan Harapan should a general election be held now,” according to a survey by think-tank Emir Research.

Is this survey result bad for Harapan? This is the proportion which voted for Harapan in GE14.

If the government continues its reforms, the non-Malay votes should carry it through in GE15.

Gerard Lourdesamy: This survey proves that Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Bersatu's pivot to the Malay voters is a waste of time.

Harapan should just concentrate on holding on to its 27-30 percent Malay support, while retaining its 95 percent Chinese and 80 percent Indian voters base. This means Harapan must be seen to be inclusive, fair and just to all the races in the country.

Implement the Harapan manifesto to the fullest, even in the face of opposition from the Malay voters who are die-hard Umno and PAS supporters. They are a lost cause to Bersatu and Amanah.

Quigonbond: Thirty-three percent Malays supported Harapan in GE14. Indeed, the numbers look the same.

But it could be worse. It could be worse if less than 33 percent show support for Harapan, which could prompt Bersatu to become even more right-wing than they are already.

We need a new agenda for the nation to wipe out the current race and religion narrative. That's why we need PKR president Anwar Ibrahim to be PM sooner rather than later because Mahathir has no desire to change course. He is a lifelong ultra.

Anonymous_1574215038706.02641574214722120: In three years’ time, a majority will back Harapan provided Anwar becomes PM by next year, and the split in PKR is significantly contained.

Moving towards GE15, the Umno/PAS marriage will go through a rough patch with squabbles over the allocation of Malay seats and the inherent clash between Islamic and secular ideologies.

Newday: The unholy PAS/Umno pact has its highest impact among rural, young and low-income people. No surprise there.

They have poor education, rarely keep abreast of what is happening in court cases and the like, and are more likely to believe whatever comes out of the mouth of their local PAS or Umno representative, no questions asked.

What is surprising is that it is roughly the same proportion of Malay voters as the last GE14. No real movement of these particular voters, status quo maintained.

Anonymous 2413471460628504: Very often we are what our environment makes us. If the other races were to be mollycoddled by the government, would they be lazy?

If only we have leaders who are good enough to play on everyone's strengths, instead of taking advantage of everyone's insecurities to bolster their position and power.

The problem is not so much the "lanuns" (pirates) disguising themselves as leaders of this country. The problem is why so many think that these robbers can be believed and preferred to the current government.

That is not to say that those in Harapan are saints. Heaven knows they are far from perfect and the current bickering in PKR is so disappointing. But to prefer BN and PAS to them, surely not!

Harapan should do what is right. By always adhering to the core right values, fighting for the long haul - that is how people can eventually be won over. Suffer now to reap the rewards much later.

Making decisions for the short term without consideration for the long term is a recipe for disaster.

Ericomc: The rural Malays are actually down to earth and simple folks. They are laid back but not lazy. They are not well-informed on the ongoing political issues.

They are proud of who and what they are - Malay and Muslim. So it is quite natural for them to empathise on issues dearest to them.

The actual problem is not the rural folks' political inclination. It is the so-called educated, elite Malay politicians, especially those from Umno and PAS.

Their manipulative and deceptive ideologies for the past half-century have made the rural Malays gullible and react emotionally and not rationally.

As long as religion and education policies are politicised, the Malays in general will find solace in political parties deemed to be championing their cause.

Kawak: The survey is not surprising. Rural and less educated people vote with racial and religious sentiments.

Don't expect them to know about or understand separation of powers, human rights, macro-economics, international trade, national finance and governance.

Dont Just Talk: The problems facing Malaysia is the lack of a good education, resulting in poor general knowledge of Malaysian youths.

If you asked the youths working in the convenience stores or petrol kiosks or in malls what the 1MDB financial scandal is about, many will either reply “tak tahu” (don’t know) or give you a blank look.

That is the reason why Muafakat Nasional is popular amongst them - ignorance is bliss.

Dummies Dhimmi: It’s down to education or the lack of it. People are swayed by race and religion, not what is right and wrong.

Umno has absolutely failed in educating the rural majority, or rather have successfully created a blind following of the less educated whose only recourse is race and religion.

With one party for race and the other for religion, we now stand at the edge of a chasm of uncertainty, staring into an abyss of extremism.

Fair Play: Look at it this way. There are two bottles of water, both half-filled. One is labelled as half full and the other as half empty.

So, what choice do the rakyat have, except for the labelling? This is the dilemma the rakyat are facing after 62 years of independence.

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