PETALING JAYA: Barisan Nasional is banking on its numero uno. As it steps into the final lap for the 13th general election (GE13), it is also hoping to benefit from the transformation plans currently underway and the loads of goodies dished out so far.
And it has promised more goodies if it wins. It is no surprise that the coalition in blue is staking its faith on the popularity of Najib Tun Razak.
Anecdotal evidence from surveys published so far show that Najib carries more weight than the coalition or his own party, Umno. Those surveys suggest Najib, who assumed the prime ministership four years ago, is generally well-liked by the electorate. You can sense the energy that Najib brings to nation building. You cannot miss his missionary zeal to transform the nation. He makes a good cut for a prime minister.
But the coalition has some catching up to do. BN, the longest surviving political alliance and easily the most formidable in this region, has seen some rough patches in recent years. Thanks to the social media, those black spots hit the road at a lighting speed. The supposed gory details are carried raw in bits and bytes to the electorate.
It didn’t help Umno or the coalition when former minister Sharizat Abdul Jalil got entangled in the cow and condo scandal. She resigned eventually, but not at the first sight of trouble. It dragged. It took a toll on the BN. There have been other such bumpy rides for BN as it marches toward GE13.
With numerous bouts of bad press, it was no surprise that Najib banked on his popularity when laying out the BN manifesto on Saturday at a lively event at a full-house Stadium Putra, Kuala Lumpur.
In a speech to launch the BN manifesto for GE13 telecast live on all major local television stations on Saturday, he said the electorate has a choice of three personalities to lead the nation. They are former deputy prime minister and Pakatan Rakyat leader Anwar Ibrahim, PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang and himself.
“Kalau jawapannya Najib, jadi sokong dan undilah BN,” he said in the speech that was delivered in Bahasa Malaysia. If you support Najib, he implored the enthusiastic crowd present, then vote for BN. Of course, he was not merely talking to the BN leaders and troopers present on that day. In a US presidential-style presentation, he was talking directly to the nation at large.
While at it, he took a few swipes at Anwar. No doubt that the television helps. But Pakatan, the out-going opposition at the federal level, is not leaving things to chance.
Just hours after Najib laid out the three names as potential candidates for the next prime minister, leaders from the PR trio – PKR, PAS and DAP – had begun responding. In their ceramahs nationwide that night itself, they gave their take on it.
“My choice is Anwar,” declared Negri Sembilan DAP chief Anthony Loke Siew Fook in a ceramah at Negri Sembilan. The speech by Siew, who is also the Member of Parliament for Rasah and State Assemblymen for Lobak, was carried live on DAP’s online TV, potentially reaching an audience far larger than the crowd standing before him that night. The battle has started. And it is going to be keen.
Habhajan Singh is the executive editor of The Malaysian Reserve.
