Your choice - vote PAS or new bridge

Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin today gave voters in Manek Urai a rather stark choice - choose either PAS or a new bridge for the state constituency.

Muhyiddin, who is Umno deputy president, told the remote constituency’s 12,293 voters that should they back Barisan Nasional on Tuesday, they would get a 300-metre bridge connecting Manek Urai Baru and Manek Urai Lama in Kuala Krai.

“We can build it (the bridge), insya'allah, but there is a condition. It is easy - all you need to do is to ‘pangkah’ (vote), but you must vote for BN. If not, there would not be any new bridge. If you want the bridge, vote BN,” Muhyiddin said.

Muhyiddin told a crowd at a meet-the-people session in Sekolah Kebangsaan Manek Urai - about 30km from Kuala Krai in Kelantan - that the bridge would cost between RM7 million and RM10 million.

The new bridge will replace the existing single-lane bridge, which was built in the 1990s (above).

He said the federal government would also consider building a new mosque in Kampung Temalir, a village which is located in the Manek Urai constituency.

These eleventh-hour sweeteners offered by Umno were seen as a last-ditch effort to swing undecided voters in this PAS stronghold on Tuesday.

Earlier, Muhyiddin had at a closed-door meeting where he urged party campaigners to reverse BN’s string of by-election losses.

The ruling coalition was defeated in four successive by-elections in Peninsular Malaysia since last year’s general election - Permatang Pauh, Kuala Terengganu, Bukit Gantang and Bukit Selambau.

Tuan Aziz Tuan Mat from Umno, a former manager of a state economic agency, is facing Kuala Krai PAS treasurer Mohd Fauzi Abdullah, a fish wholeseller, in a straight fight.

Kelantan Menteri Besar Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat had warned the voters at a ceramah in Kampung Chuchuh Puteri A on Wednesday night that Umno would be offering ‘bribes’ to them.

"Kalau beri pitih, ambi; kalau beri gula, kacau; kalau beri kain, pakai; tapi hak mengundi nanti, pangkah bulan." (If given money, take it; if given sugar, stir it; if given clothing, wear it. However, come election day, vote for the moon),” said Nik Aziz, who is also PAS spiritual leader.

In an immediate response, Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim has, at a ceramah in Manek Urai tonight, called on the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Agency to investigate Muhyiddin's 'new bridge' bribe.

Outstation voters key to outcome

With two days to go to polling day, outstation voters are increasingly seen as crucial in determining which party would emerge victorious.

It is estimated that about 1,300 PAS voters and 500 BN voters are living and working outside Kelantan. Another 400 voters are residing in the state but outside of the Manek Urai constituency.

In the 2008 general election, the late Ismail Yaacob from PAS won by a majority of 1,352 votes.

Meanwhile, Kelantan PAS election director Abdul Fatah Haron was confident that his party would retain the seat.

“We have reached our target... but we should not rest on our laurels. We need to continue the hard work,” he said at a press conference today.

Abdul Fatah added that phantom voters would not be a significant factor in this by-election.

“In a kampung, they know each other. Hence, if there are phantom voters they would be identified by our electoral agents,” he said.

Abdul Fatah also promised a surprise from PAS tomorrow as the two rival parties enter the final day of campaigning.

“I want to keep it a secret - let’s wait for the appropriate time for us to announce it,” he said.