Malaysia's new leader dealt rebuke in polls
Posted: 08 April 2009 0009 hrs

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TAIPING, Malaysia: Malaysia's Prime Minister Najib Razak was dealt a rebuke by voters on Tuesday, losing two of three by-elections seen as a referendum on support for his new leadership and promised reforms.

The votes were the first test for Najib, who was sworn in last Friday, and provided a snapshot of the public mood one year after the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition was humbled in disastrous general elections.

The coalition won one of Tuesday's ballots, for a seat in the state parliament in Sarawak on Borneo island, with a convincing majority that showed it remains the dominant political force in the underdeveloped region.

But the opposition scored a landslide victory in the most prominent of the three polls, in Bukit Gantang in northern Perak state, claiming another seat in the national parliament and a major boost to its credibility.

It also won the hotly contested third election, for a seat in the state parliament of northern Kedah.

The ruling coalition Barisan Nasional said it accepted the results of the three by-elections as a decision by the voters and does not feel that it is a referendum of the nation's leadership.

Bernama news agency quoted BN's director for the by-elections, Muhyiddin Yassin, as saying: "This is not a referendum on the leadership. Maybe the feel good factor of the leadership of (Datuk Seri) Najib (Tun Razak) has yet to sink in on the voters."

Muhyiddin, who is also deputy president of UMNO, made these remarks after he was asked by reporters whether the results of the by-elections were a referendum by the people towards the new BN leadership.

UMNO vice-president Hishammuddin Tun Hussein said BN's failure to wrest back the Bukit Selambau seat from the opposition does not mean the people's rejection of the country's new leadership.

He said there were several local and national factors which contributed to BN's loss.

"That (people's rejection of Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak as new prime minister) is not the case because he has only just taken over the leadership of the country and has not even announced his cabinet line-up yet.

"Give us some time. We'll prove that BN's politics is not sensational or seasonal and centred on certain issues only, but a struggle that is consistent and takes into consideration the needs and aspirations of the people," he said.

He added that the defeat also served as a useful lesson for the BN to face the 13th general election, which must be held by 2012.

Anwar Ibrahim, who leads the three-member opposition alliance and made a failed bid to unseat the government last year with the help of defectors, was elated by the performance.

"Malaysians want change, irrespective of the new prime minister," he told AFP.

He said the winds of change were "still blowing" after the landmark general elections a year ago in which the opposition seized control of five of Malaysia's 13 states and a third of seats in parliament.

Najib has announced an ambitious agenda to reform the ruling party UMNO, which represents majority Muslim Malays, and repair ties with the nation's ethnic Chinese and Indian minorities.

But after his predecessor Abdullah Ahmad Badawi failed to implement his own promised reforms during his six years in power, there is scepticism over whether Najib can deliver.

"It is definitely a bruising for Najib," said political analyst Shaharuddin Badaruddin.

"He will now have to look again at how he is going to win back the support of Malaysians and come up with a plan quickly to ensure the Barisan Nasional is not routed in the next general elections."

The three constituencies, embracing more than 98,700 voters, were seen as an indicator of the next elections due by 2013 because they represent a wide spectrum of Malaysians.

The electorates included rural Malays who have been UMNO's bedrock, as well as ethnic Chinese and Indians, who flocked to the opposition in the March 2008 elections.

The coalition's win in Sarawak was widely anticipated, after it flooded the impoverished electorate with development funds, but political analysts said the loss in Bukit Gantang heaped pressure on Najib.

Ibrahim Suffian from the Merdeka Centre polling firm said the new leader must now deliver on his promises, in order to win back voters before the next general elections.

"He has to be able to tangibly make a difference before Malaysians will swing back support to the coalition," he said.

"What it means is that there is no honeymoon, Malaysians want their changes to happen now, and he cannot expect that rhetoric alone will carry the day."

Azmin Ali, vice-president of Anwar's Keadilan party, which leads the Pakatan Rakyat alliance, said the results showed a "rejection of the prime minister and bad government policies that have done much damage to the country".

"What these results show is that Pakatan Rakyat is still very popular with the people and that they want an honest, credible government which Barisan Nasional is unable to deliver," he said. - AFP/Bernama/ir/de