George Town, April 14 – Speculations are rife that Datuk Loga Bala Mohan (pic), the Deputy Minister for Federal Territories Ministry and State Chairman of PPP Penang, has been appointed as the Coordinator for the Indian votes in Permatang Pauh Parliamentary constituency, which will see an intense by-election battle on the 7th of May.
The by-election is caused by the conviction of Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim who was sentenced to 5 years imprisonment by the Federal Court on Sodomy charges.
Political sources in Penang said, the decision to appoint Loga Bala Mohan as the Coordinator for Indian votes was made by UMNO and Barisan Nasional during a meeting held yesterday chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.
It is believed that Penang UMNO cited the ongoing political battle in MIC and the confusion created by the ongoing legal tussle between MIC leadership and RoS (Registrar of Societies) as the plausible reasons for rejecting MIC as the Coordinator of the Indian votes in Permatang Pauh.
Another reason cited was the weak leadership of MIC Penang State Congress and the in-fighting within MIC Penang State Congress. These reasons are seen as set-backs which may not bring the required Indian votes in the Constituency. UMNO sources in Penang claimed that BN fears are justified that MIC will fail miserably in bringing the Indian votes in favour of BN and therefore BN decided to tackle the Indian votes directly with the help of PPP which is seen as the next strongest party wielding influence among Indian voters.
MIC Penang State Congress is currently headed by lawyer M.Karuppannan.
Although winning the Permatang Pauh constituency is an impossible task for UMNO-BN led election machinery, they are out to show the country that the imprisonment of Anwar Ibrahim is not a serious factor among voters as portrayed by Pakatan Rakyat, by reducing the majority compared to 2013 General election.
Even Penang Chief Minister and DAP Secretary General today warned PKR not to be too confident of retaining the seat.
Therefore, the Indian votes will be a crucial factor in UMNO’s battle to reduce the majority attained by Anwar Ibrahim in 2013 GE.
According to the electoral rolls the estimated registered voters in Permatang Pauh parliamentary constituency are 72,513, comprising 51,032 Malays, 16,583 Chinese, 4,581 Indians and 317 others.
By BN tradition MIC is generally appointed as the Coordinator for Indian votes in electoral constituencies during by-elections and general election, reinforcing MIC’s claim as the sole and dominant party in BN representing the Indian community.
Therefore, the appointment of an Indian leader from PPP as the Coordinator for Indian votes in Permatang Pauh is seen as an affront to the MIC’s supremacy and presence in Barisan Nasional. PPP is a multi-racial component party of BN.
