Anwar’s absence from
Sungai Bakap campaign
trail right move, say
analysts
James Chin and Awang Azman Pawi say the state-level party machinery and candidate’s performance on the ground are more important in winning votes.
PETALING JAYA: Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s decision not to hit the campaign trail for the Sungai Bakap by-election in Penang is the right move in light of his lack of popularity on the ground and the election’s local dynamics, say political analysts.
James Chin of the University of Tasmania said Anwar’s popularity among Malay voters is not strong and his presence could potentially overshadow local issues.
“If he comes, things like the increase in diesel price (and) cost of living will dominate the discussions instead,” he told FMT.
Chin said Anwar should instead assume a leadership role from afar, rather than risk negative attention by appearing in a relatively minor election.
“At the moment, he is unpopular on the ground, so there is no reason for him to show his face,” he said.
On Saturday, former Penang deputy chief minister P Ramasamy questioned the real reason behind Anwar’s decision to stay away from the by-election.
He said Anwar’s absence in the campaign for the Kuala Kubu Baharu by-election in Selangor last month could have been due to discomfort with the Pakatan Harapan (PH) candidate being from DAP, but it was unclear why he would not support his own party’s candidate this time.
PH has announced that it will field Joohari Ariffin of PKR, a former director at the Aminuddin Baki Institute in Kedah, as its candidate for the July 6 by-election.
Meanwhile, Awang Azman Pawi of Universiti Malaya (UM) said Anwar’s absence might be due to the perceived non-critical nature of the by-election.
“Based on the past, it is common practice for by-elections to be led by deputy presidents or other senior party leaders, rather than the prime minister himself,” he said, noting this was a standard practice in micro-politics.
He added that the state-level machinery should be enough to influence voter turnout for the by-election, asserting that Anwar’s involvement would signal a lack of confidence in the PKR candidate’s ability to win.
However, Chin said voter turnout also hinges on how the candidate performs on the ground,
“We saw that very clearly in Kuala Kubu Baharu, where the large Chinese turnout was due to the candidate working hard,” he said, referring to DAP’s Pang Sock Tao.
“So, we need to see (similar dedication) from the PKR candidate (in Sungai Bakap).”
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