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Armed (with plastic forks and spoons) and dangerous?

Anil Netto
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20

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After the potluck at the MBPJ premises was disrupted, participants moved it to the Lotus Restaurant opposite – Photo by Man with d Video Cam

Rakyat@work reports from the PJ Abolish ISA vigil last night:

“Too many troops spoil the soup.”

Indeed last night’s PJ Abolish ISA vigil, pot-luck style, caused so much confusion amongst many of the rakyat who came prepared with home-cooked food to share with everyone.

Instead, at about 8.20pm, an operation to ‘lock down’ the PJ Civil Centre turned it into a ‘centre of shame’.

“I had some food specially prepared for this occasion and to see how this entire operation took place is simply outrageous,” commented one of the rakyat.

First, the authorities were jittery about lighted candles; now food? What’s next? More than a hundred police and FRU personnel were deployed to monitor some 150 ordinary citizens armed with plastic forks and spoons. Roads were blocked and traffic diverted. I stood there amazed at the sheer extent of the police operations. It was massive.

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Jubilation as ‘East Coast Monsoon’ swamps KT

Anil Netto
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20

k-terengganu-results-017The motorcyclists celebrated late into the night on the streets of KT

And so it came to pass (Pas!). The ‘East Coast Monsoon’ swamped this coastal town and swept the BN aside. It was a victory not just for Pas but also the Pakatan, whose politicians helped in the campaign, and activists, many of them non-Muslims, who campaigned vigorously during the campaign. They worked together to dislodge the BN candidate despite the heavy machinery of the state being deployed.

Most of all, it was a victory for the people of Kuala Terengganu, who cast away their fears, doubts and the attempts to buy their votes through promises of allocations and projects.

Immediately after the results, an analyst told me the swing towards Pas came largely from younger voters. How they celebrated on the streets: hundreds of bikers and others in cars, waving flags and shouting in jubilation.  They pulled down flags from the streets, draped themselves with them or just simply waved them, circling the streets of town on their bikes and waving at passers by as they vroomed by. By midnight, the the main road in town had been almost stripped of Pas flags and the only flags left fluttering were the BN and Umno flags.

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LIVE from KT: Pas clinches nail-biting victory

Anil Netto
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8

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Bemused Light Strike Force personnel keep an eye on the good-humoured exchange and canvassing outside the Chendering School. Thousands of police have been deployed

k-terengganu-polling-day-003Exuberant Pas supporters outnumber the BN folks just before noon: This scene is repeated in other streets of KT today.

The final majority is 2,631.  Congrats, blog reader Rahman S; you came really close with your “2,968 votes with +-2% error” prediction! Thanks to all who helped with information from the counting centre and the media. Outside I can hear a whole convoy of honking motorbikes and other vehicles passing on the main road. As in Permatang Pauh, it was the celebrating motorcyclists who were the first to be so sure of victory soon after polling stations had closed…

2105: Pas leads by 2,424 in the official tally, with two boxes left. It’s impossible for the BN to catch up.

Congratulations to the victors! Where does this leave Najib? Anyway, now I can have something to eat! But first, we are off to check out the scene on the streets.

2104: Pas leads by 2,400 votes with three more boxes left.

2103: It’s now a 1,700 majority with 10 boxes more to be counted.

2102: Pas has stretched its lead to 1,500, as it enters the home straight. Eighteen boxes more to be counted.

2058: Pas has now widened its official lead to 1,300. What a roller-coaster ride this has been!

2051: Pas has now taken a 900-majority lead, according to the official tally.

2049: Officially, Pas leads by 600 votes now.

2043: According to an unofficial Pas source, still unconfirmed, as related to an activist, Pas has won. According to another source, who just phones up, the unofficial majority is 2,700 or so. But let’s see how the official results pan out.

2031: According to unofficial sources, Pas has taken a 2,700-majority lead with over 100 boxes out of 144 counted. Officially, Pas is in the lead by 200 votes.

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A hugely significant by-election

Anil Netto
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4

By-Poll Will Test Political Drift
By Anil Netto

KUALA TERENGGANU, Jan 16 (IPS) – Following the political tsunami in March, which propelled a disparate opposition alliance to power in five of 13 Malaysian states, voters in the capital of oil-rich Terengganu state will determine Saturday if an ‘east coast monsoon’ will drive the alliance closer to national power.

This key parliamentary by-election in itself will not change anything as the ruling coalition holds a 137-82 majority over the opposition Pakatan Rakyat (People’s Alliance) in Parliament.

But it is hugely symbolic since Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak, who is leading the ruling Barisan Nasional’s campaign, is seeking to use by-election to hammer home his credentials as prime minister-in-waiting.

Full story here.

BN’s last big ceramah

Anil Netto
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11

k-terengganu-by-election-005The BN uses a stadium that could fill 20,000 for its last big ceramah last night, complete with a stage for an open-air concert. But just about 3,000 turn up during the time we were there between 9.00pm and 10.00pm

Among the speakers urging the crowd to support the BN is Hishamuddin Hussein.

I finally solve the mystery of the Information Department trailer. You see the vehicle partly hidden by the the bus? See the stripes? This appears to be the same trailer that we spotted parked in town a couple of days ago.

I stroll up the field closer to the vehicle and discover that paper has been stuck on the side of the vehicle to cover up the name of the department to which the trailer belongs. Similarly, other lorries and pick-ups have paper stuck on the sides to cover up the names of organisations.

This was the trailer we spotted in town a couple of days ago.

Why do they plaster paper on the sides of the vehicles used for events like this – unless they are trying to cover up something: the abuse of government property for election campaigning?

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Opposition buoyant as campaigning draws to a close

Anil Netto
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11

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Pakatan supporters in upbeat mood ahead of the polls: this was the scene at a main road in KT at around 4.00pm, when Pas, DAP and PKR supporters waved at passing motorists.  Among the enthusiastic road-side flag-wavers were bloggers from KL and activists from the PJ Abolish ISA vigils

2010: It’s proving to be hard to call, but Pakatan supporters are quietly confident that their candidate will coast through with a 1,000 to 2,000-vote majority. A few are predicting a bigger majority. Much will depend on whether Pas can build on the support it already has.

The Pakatan campaigners are everywhere. When I take time off this evening to look up the house I lived in when I was seven along Jalan Cerong Lanjut – I actually find the terrace house still standing, much to my delight – I notice a familiar figure walking up to the Hindu temple nearby. I take a closer look and it is Sivarasa Rasiah from PKR accompanied by a DAP activist. I stroll back to the old house and promptly run into a couple more DAP activists, who are making the rounds.

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LIVE from KT: The buzz at a Chinese cafe

Anil Netto
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28

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1100: We return to the same cafe where we had roti paun yesterday. This seems to be a happening place. Seated at the table by the entrace, a couple of Pas volunteers are working on a laptop. They have also blown small green Pas balloons which bob around.

Inside the crowded cafe, the sound of chatter fills the air. People are reading the Chinese newspapers. At a table near us, a Chinese guy is looking at the front page of the latest Suara Keadilan, with the headline “Najib bohong” about the Permatang Pauh pledges.

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Jewish women protest inside Israeli consulate in Toronto

Anil Netto
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7

Here’s a protest against what’s happening in Gaza that you wouldn’t have seen in the mainstream media.

A message from Permatang Pauh voters

Anil Netto
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5

One of the PKR’s messages to the voters in KT is, don’t be taken in by promises of grants, aid and development. Anwar himself has been hammering home the message to voters here, citing what happened during the Permatang Pauh by-election last August.

During the Permatang Pauh by-election a number of promises were made especially pledges of aid to mosques. Folks there are now alleging that the promises remain unfulfilled. It’s the front page story in the latest Suara Keadilan this week. Check it out here.

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T’ganu’s debt, deficit soars despite return of royalties

Anil Netto
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7

k-terengganu-by-election-002The oil royalties may have been returned, but the state’s debt has been rising and it posted a deficit for 2007

One night, when I was unable to fall asleep, I opened up the Auditor-General’s Report for 2007, thinking it might be a cure for insomnia, but what I saw caught me completely by surprise.

I found out that the state once again started receiving its oil royalties from the federal government (coming from the Dana Khas or Special Fund). No surprise there:

2003 – Nil
2004 – RM150 million
2005 – RM1,015 million
2006 – RM1,334 million
2007 – RM1,000 million

But, and this is where it gets interesting, the state government’s debt to the federal government has been rising during the same period:

2003 – RM891 million
2004 – RM919 million
2005 – RM922 million
2006 – RM903 million
2007 – RM937 million

These are largely due to federal loans, taken out for “water supply” and “low-cost housing” projects.

Despite the substantially increased income to the state, Terengganu’s accounts show a deficit of RM284 million for 2007 compared to a surplus of RM184 million for 2006.

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