Lower voter turnout in Mahkota a signal to Umno
While the lower non-Malay voter turnout in Mahkota was expected, it was also a signal that the Chinese community wanted to send out to Umno, said Professor James Chin, director of Governance Studies at the Jeffrey Cheah Institute on Southeast Asia at Sunway University.
“They know that the by-election would not change the government. Having said that, the Chinese wanted to send a signal against Umno for the racist statements that comes from the party,” he said.
“Umno Youth chief Datuk Dr Akmal Salleh keeps attacking the Chinese and the non-Muslims but keeps quiet on the child abuse case involving GISB. The community is unhappy with Umno,” he elaborated.
Akmal has been hitting on the non-Malays over multiple issues including the halal proposal. He trained his guns against Seputeh MP Teresa Kok for raising her concerns at the federal level.
Yesterday Umno-BN candidate Syed Hussien Syed Abdullah retained Mahkota by polling 27941 votes compared to his rival, Haizan Jaafar of PN who obtained 7332 votes.
Chin added that the drop in non-Malay voters should not a troubling factor in the long run, especially for the DAP.
“The low voter turnout would not repeat in a general election. The Chinese are more afraid of Pas.”
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