Permatang Pauh Umno wants their Abdul Jalil to contest against Anwar

NST online

The Permatang Pauh Umno division has proposed that their head Datuk Abdul Jalil Abdul Majid as Barisan Nasional’s candidate to contest against PKR de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim in the Parliamentary by election. [more]

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Barisan and PKR raise their colours

PKR Flags flown outside of Permatang Pauh Operations HQ in Penanti

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BUKIT MERTAJAM: Banners, flags and billboards have been put up in Permatang Pauh as Barisan Nasional and PKR workers set the campaign tone ahead of the constituency’s by-election.

Although the by-election date has yet to be set, party supporters have started wooing voters through banners and billboards.

The four-storey white and blue Yayasan Aman building in Kubang Semang has become busy as it will be used by PKR as their operations centre.

Permatang Pauh PKR division secretary Muhamad Rodzi Abdul Hamid said renovations were being carried out to spruce up the 21-year-old building and not specifically for the by-election. [more]

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SMS On Anwar’s Arrest Just A Rumour, Says His Lawyer

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 5 (Bernama) — Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s cousel, R. Sivarasa, has dismissed as rumours the short messaging service (SMS) text going the rounds that the Pakatan Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) advisor will be arrested by police Tuesday.

He said he and Anwar had not received any information from the police and nothing had happened so far.

“I also don’t know who is behind the SMS, which is definitely not started by PKR, but it could be from irresponsible people who are out to take advantage of the situation,” he said when met by reporters at Anwar’s residence.

He said Anwar was prepared for the possibility of being detained Tuesday and all activities planned by PKR would proceed as scheduled.

Bernama understands that Anwar will be in Bentong, Pahang, Tuesday night to give a ceramah.

– BERNAMA

Use indelible ink for Permatang Pauh, urges PKR

By DERRICK VINESH, the star.com.my

BUTTERWORTH: PKR is urging the Election Commission to use the indelible ink in the coming Permatang Pauh by-election.

Its Youth chief Shamsul Iskandar Mohd Akin said it was a waste of public funds spent on the ink, if it was not used.

“This is the best time for the EC to test and see if the usage of indelible ink is workable,” he said on Tuesday.

Shamsul said the usage of the ink would help promote greater transparency in the country’s election process. [more]

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Wan Azizah Apologizes to Photographer

thestar.com.my

GEORGE TOWN: PKR president Datuk Seri Wan Azizah Wan Ismail has apologised to a Guang Ming Daily photographer who was allegedly assaulted by a group of party supporters on Sunday.

The photographer, Loh Huay Hoon, 25, said she received a call from Wan Azizah at 11.40am on Tuesday.

“Wan Azizah said she was shocked to see a picture of me being attacked by a group of men in the newspapers,” said Loh.

Loh had lodged a police report on Monday saying she was kicked, choked and hit on the head by some of the men in the group.

The men had tailed her to the carpark after a ceramah (political address) by PKR de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim at the Seberang Jaya Expo site.

“Wan Azizah told me ‘nampak gambar pun takut sebab orang itu big man’ (She too would be afraid upon seeing the huge man in the picture). She apologised profusely many times and said PKR would conduct an internal investigation on the matter,” said Loh. Wan Azizah, she added, explained that the security personnel were jittery that night as somebody had found a bullet at the expo site.

“She said Anwar was also angry with the security personnel because they were strict with the crowd when the people tried to shake hands with him,” said Loh.

Loh believed she was attacked after an exchange of words with security personnel who tried to stop her from moving closer to snap pictures of Anwar during the forum. [more]

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PAS wary of Anwar’s moves

The Star.comCOMMENT
By BARADAN KUPPUSAMY

PAS fears that in an Anwar-led government, concessions made on his way up would mean Islam and Malays being relegated to the backseat.

NOT by piety alone has Kelantan Mentri Besar Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat risen up the ranks of PAS to become the powerful Murshid’ul Am or spiritual leader of the party which has a membership now of over one million.

Splendid political footwork and a willingness to fell his detractors are key elements of his success – a talent that he hides well behind his piousness and charming demeanour.

The way he undermined the PAS-Umno talks and offset PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang and his deputy Nasaruddin Mat Isa, then gained the upper hand, is a classic example of how the crafty leader has survived this long in a party given to constant ideological battles.

It is hard to imagine that this 77-year-old veteran started as a part-time adult class teacher with Kemas in 1960 at a time when he was just one of the many Al-Azhar graduates crowding Kota Baru and not yet the Tok Guru he later grew into. [more]

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Anwar about to be arrested?

Straitstimes.com

 

KUALA LUMPUR – TALK spread on Tuesday afternoon that an arrest warrant has been issued for Malaysia’s de facto opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim.

Police, however, refused to confirm the rumours.

Last week, Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar said police had completed their investigations into the case of Anwar’s alleged sexual assault.  [more]

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Journalist Allegedly Assaulted After Anwar Rallye

Mysinchew.com

When: 11.35p.m. 3 August

Where: Seberang Jaya Agricultural Exhibition Centre

What happened: After Anwar Ibrahim left the 10,000-strong gathering, Guang Ming Daily photographer Luo Hueifen found herself rounded up by some security personnel. In the commotion she was kicked and nipped in the neck. She was also hit from the back, causing her to feel dizzy.

BUTTERWORTH: Guang Ming Daily photographer Luo Hueifen was brutally assaulted by Parti Keadilan Rakyat security officers on Sunday night, causing her to feel dizzy and her head to become swollen.

The incident took place at Seberang Jaya Agricultural Exhibition Centre. After Keadilan advisor Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim was escorted away by his security personnel, Luo found herself besieged.

These security officers began to curse her after Anwar left. In the commotion, a male security officer suddenly kicked her, and later dashed forward to nip her neck. [more]

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Responding to Anwar Ibrahim, fuel prices may be set lower, says DPM

THe New Straits Times Online

KUALA LUMPUR: Fuel prices may be set lower if the government can afford to pay even more in subsidies than it does, the deputy prime minister said.

“Anything can be done to bring down the price of fuel at the pump.

“Anything is possible, but it depends on how much you want to set aside in subsidies,” Datuk Seri Najib Razak said.

He said the government’s huge subsidy bill was a drain on resources which could be put to better use elsewhere.

Najib was responding to de facto opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s latest promise to bring down fuel prices at the pump by 70 sen a litre.

Najib said increasing subsidies was wrong on three counts: it meant a larger burden on the government, it bucked worldwide economic trends to reduce subsidies and it encouraged consumption and not conservation. [more]

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Five reasons Anwar could lose

SYED NADZRI, The New Straits Online

EVEN his harshest critics are making no bones about the fact that he is the odds-on favourite in this by-election. But frankly, will Permatang Pauh be all that safe for Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim?

True, the parliamentary constituency has been a home ground of sorts for him ever since, as a party rookie, he helped Umno wrest it from Pas control in the 1982 general election by defeating Zabidi Ali, a revered local ustaz.

And though he was not born and never went to school in Permatang Pauh (he is from Cherok Tok Kun which is somewhere between Kulim and Bukit Mertajam) Anwar’s assumed formidability — whether in spirit or even on the opposite side of the political fence — hardly ebbed as his wife Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail took over the seat under Parti Keadilan Rakyat in the 1999, 2004 and 2008 elections.

But circumstances have changed somewhat — more significantly so after March 8.

The Election Commission meets tomorrow to decide on the date of the by-election. And there can be many reasons Permatang Pauh may not live up to be Fortress Anwar after all. Here are just five of them:

1. Barisan Nasional hardly ever loses in a by-election. The near-impeccable record is due largely to its clinical machinery derived from the years of experience of contesting all the by-elections there had ever been as a coalition force.

The record of the last four years speaks for itself: 6-0 in BN’s favour — in Kuala Berang, Terengganu (August 2004), Ba’kelalan, Sarawak (September 2004), Pengkalan Pasir, Kelantan (December 2005), Batu Talam, Pahang (January 2007), Machap, Malacca (April 2007) and Ijok, Selangor (April 2007).

Quite significantly, Ijok featured PKR strongman Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim as candidate, with Anwar himself as chief campaigner.

On this score, the odds are against Pakatan Rakyat which is likely to find it more difficult to strike good teamwork.

The PKR-DAP-Pas coalition announced on Sunday what BN had already been doing all these years, that they had reached a pact to jointly take on BN in the by-election arising from Dr Wan Azizah giving up the seat.

Penang PKR elections director Mustaffa Kamal Yusof has been appointed to oversee the coordination efforts and for a start, the coalition has agreed to set up operation centres in all 28 polling districts in Permatang Pauh. [more]

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