KUALA LUMPUR: Gerakan president Koh Tsu Koon(Pic) admits that it will be a tough general election for the party, but says that Barisan Nasional will win.
Koh, who is not contesting in the election, said he agreed with Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak’s “cautiously optimistic” stance on BN’s prospects of retaining the government.
“I would say it is an uphill task, a very challenging task…,” he said on the chances for Gerakan to regain its former glory.
He said that after four years of efforts in transformation and in driving the economy further, there is support for the BN and for Gerakan to a certain extent.
The Gerakan leader emphasised on what he called touch point products given to the people, such as the 1Malaysia products which include the Bantuan Rakyat 1Malaysia as one of the reasons for support towards the BN and Gerakan.
“I would believe there is a return of support in general to the BN and also towards other component parties like Gerakan in particular,” he said.
“However, we also take note of the fact that the last five years, it has been a worldwide trend for urban voters to be more vocal and to be more demanding.”
“Look at Singapore, with its very advanced economy and a very stable society, you could see that this trend is also happening there,” he said.
Koh said his party expects greater challenges in urban areas more than before; however, there has also been political transformation in the country that will be beneficial to the BN.
He said the prime minister has demonstrated the government’s commitment with the repeal of the Internal Security Act and of many restrictive laws, amendments to university and colleges promoting much greater freedom and civil societies while putting the emphasis on security.
“We are taking a more matured approach towards more democracy in Malaysia,” he said.
Koh was met on the sidelines of the World Taiwan Chamber of Commerce Conference (WTCC) in here yesterday.
Meanwhile, he said that total calculated investment from Taiwan’s entrepreneurs into Malaysia had reached a whopping US$11.6 billion (RM35.5 billion) but noted that last year saw one of the lowest with only US$58 million invested.
Representative of Taipei Economic and Cultural office in Malaysia Lo Yu-Chung, said the investment amounted to US$400 million in 2011 and it is expected to grow to US$100 million at least in 2013.
