DAY 2 | No early voting centres

DAY 2 | Today is the second day of campaigning for the Sungai Bakap by-election.

Pakatan Harapan candidate Joohari Ariffin is up against Perikatan Nasional’s Abidin Ismail in a straight fight, with polling day set for July 6. Early voting is scheduled for July 2.

Malaysiakini reports live from the ground.

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This concludes Day 2 of the Sungai Bakap by-election campaign.

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No early voting centres

2pm: Sungai Bakap, Nibong Tebal - No voting centres will be opened on early voting day for the Sungai Bakap state by-election this July 2.

Sungai Bakap returning officer Khairulnizam Hashim, who confirmed this, said all the early voters in the by-election, comprising 57 police personnel, are casting their ballots as postal voters.

“True, there will be no early voting as all the early voters have applied for postal voting,” Bernama reported him as saying.

Khairulnizam said the Election Commission will issue the postal ballot papers for the affected early voters to collect at 2.30pm tomorrow.

Based on the electoral roll, as of May 24, 39,279 people are eligible to vote in the by-election. They comprise 39,222 ordinary voters and 57 police personnel.

Joohari cautious over civil servant support

10.45am: Sungai Bakap, Nibong Tebal - PKR candidate Joohari Ariffin has expressed measured confidence in the continued support of civil servants for the ruling coalition.

However, he emphasises that a clear picture will only emerge after the early voting process concludes.

“To know whether they are leaning (towards the government) or not, it’s difficult to tell right now unless we look at what happens after the early voting takes place. We need to see the difference then,” Joohari states, highlighting the uncertainty.

Despite this, he remains optimistic about recent developments as civil servants appear to be backing the ruling coalition.

This comes in the wake of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s salary increment announcement, which some believe may have swayed civil servant votes back towards the government during the Kuala Kubu Baharu by-election in May.

Harapan candidate admits to nerves

10.30am: Sungai Bakap, Nibong Tebal - Pakatan Harapan candidate Joohari Ariffin admits he is nervous about interacting with voters in Sungai Bakap.

On the campaign trail, the former educator responded to queries about his apparent awkwardness in both dealing with voters and public speaking during the first day of campaigning yesterday.

“Yes, it’s true, but we have to accept that when I was trying to speak, there was nervousness.

“The number one fear in America is public speaking, yes. So that’s normal,” says Joohari (above) after being grilled by the media for approximately 45 minutes.

He also says that he had to shorten the time spent engaging with each voter, particularly during walkabouts, as he has to cover a lot of ground in the next two weeks of the election campaign.

‘Don’t bring voters’ religious beliefs into polls’

8am: Elections are not the venue for parties to determine voters’ religious beliefs. It should instead be a platform for political parties to explain their plans and agenda for the people should they emerge victorious, said PKR secretary-general Saifuddin Nasution Ismail.

Any party that attempts to do so should not be supported in any campaign, he added in a speech at Taman Widuri, Sungai Jawi last night.

“Election campaigning means both parties go up against each other with their policies, plans, agenda when they get the right to administrate and what they will do to help the people.

“Elections are not the venue for us to say, ‘Choose us and it means you’re a Muslim, and if you don’t, you’re not our kin’. You can’t do that. This isn’t about determining voters’ beliefs but how we run the country,” Bernama quoted Saifuddin as saying.

Amanah president Mohamad Sabu, Amanah strategic director Dzulkefly Ahmad, Umno supreme council member Zambry Abd Kadir were also present to support the Harapan candidate for the Sungai Bakap by-election Joohari Ariffin.

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