BN won Ayer Kuning after legitimising DAP alliance, says Hadi

FMT:

BN won Ayer Kuning after legitimising DAP alliance, says Hadi


PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang says the Umno-DAP pact seeks to ‘purify’ DAP, which he claims has ‘openly taken anti-Islam stances’

PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang said political currents are naturally fluid and dynamic, often shifting in directions inconsistent with Islamic values. (Bernama pic)

PETALING JAYA: PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang today played down Barisan Nasional’s (BN) victory in the Ayer Kuning by-election last weekend, saying it does not necessarily signal any significant impact on future general or state elections.

In a post on X, Hadi said political currents are naturally fluid and dynamic, often shifting in directions inconsistent with Islamic values.

The Marang MP said BN candidate Yusri Bakir’s victory in the by-election stemmed from the Umno-DAP alliance, commonly referred to as “UmDAP”, which he claimed sought to “purify” DAP – a party which he said had “openly taken anti-Islam stances”.


“This includes efforts to ‘cleanse’ DAP and Pakatan Harapan (PH) of blame in controversies such as illegal pig farming in predominantly Malay-Muslim areas,” he said.

He said many Malay-Muslim voters in Ayer Kuning rejected the idea of a “progressive and liberal Islam” and UmDAP’s efforts to cleanse DAP’s image, as these were against Islamic principles – especially in light of the health and environmental risks linked to pig farming.


Hadi also claimed that UmDAP had led some of Umno’s supporters to embrace the secular principle of “the end justifies the means” and other liberal ideologies.

“They remain in government to obtain positions of power, including as menteris besar and state executive councillors, as well as to gain access to projects and selective judicial outcomes – often to protect allies against allegations of crime and corruption.

“Meanwhile, opponents are dragged to court over both real and fabricated charges, with cases manufactured against anyone who resists,” he claimed.

Yusri was declared the winner with a 5,006-vote majority – more than double the 2,213-vote majority obtained in 2022 by Ishsam Shahruddin, whose death on Feb 22 triggered the by-election for the state assembly seat.


Yusri defeated Perikatan Nasional’s (PN) candidate Abd Muhaimin Malek, who garnered 6,059 votes, and Parti Sosialis Malaysia’s KS Bawani, who obtained 1,106 votes.

The issue of pig farms was a central campaign point for PN, with concerns raised over their presence in a predominantly Malay area. The government repeatedly denied the claims, saying the existing pig farms were operating above board.

FMT previously quoted political analyst Awang Azman Pawi as saying that PN’s over-reliance on PAS and the rhetoric of championing Malay issues might have contributed to the opposition’s loss at the Ayer Kuning polls.

Awang Azman said the PN strategy had less effect on the moderate Malays and Ayer Kuning’s multiethnic demographic.


However, he said the voting pattern showed that many BN-PH supporters might have abstained.

He said PN’s voters, on the other hand, had come out in full force as the opposition coalition suffered only a mild loss of around 800 votes compared to the 2022 election, despite the voter turnout dropping from 74% to 58%.

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