Day 7: Azmin slams Hisham over terror link probe

FREE TENANG DAY 7 What's happening in the by-election campaign in the state constituency of Tenang? Quotable quotes, planned events and unplanned incidents as they take place in N5.

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8am: Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin visits Labis market, opposite the Labis MCA division office. However the response seems not to be very encouraging when a heavy downpour started around 8.35am.

9am: Thirty six flood victims in Kampung Lembah Bakti receive  government aid from deputy prime minister.

Muhyiddin Yassin, who has been in this state constituency since yesterday, said the government sympathised with the victims and hoped that the aid would help ease their burden.

According to Bernama, he said the government had channelled aid to the flood victims in Kedah and Perlis, totalling RM30.6 million.

10am: Deputy premier attends gotong royong function a Orang Asli village in Kampung Segamat Kecil, Labis. BN candidate Azahar Ibrahim is also in attendance

10.30am: Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein attends 'Reka uniform delivery' function for Indian voters at Ladang Bukit Dato, Labis.

11.30am: During a press conference, PAS Kuala Krai MP Dr Hatta Ramli speaks about Normala Sudirman's husband, Maarof Abd Mutalib (right in pic), who is supposedly on medical leave for three weeks but was seen campaigning with his wife.

Dr Hatta said he was unsure whether the medical certificate (MC) was genuine or not, but stressed that it should not be revealed as it was a confidential document between a worker and his employer.

Hatta, who is a trained medical doctor, said what was mentioned on the MC was that Maarof was facing "depression problems" which are usually due to pressure, death in the family or moving.

The issue was raised by a blogger who published three copies of an MC allegedly issued to Maarof for a period of 21 days from Jan 6.

The blogger questioned whether Maarof had been diagnosed with a serious illness that required three weeks of medical leave, or whether it was merely an excuse for him to campaign for his wife.

Umno-owned daily Utusan Malaysia today played up the issue from the blog Marahku (My Anger).

11.30am: Muhyiddin attends function at Ah Nyok coffeeshop, Kampung Sawah Padi, Labis before visiting the home of Taib Abdullah at Kampung Contoh, Tenang Stesyen.

12pm: Hishammuddin visits the home of Saudi Tamsil at Felda Chemplak before heading for prayers at the Felda Chemplak mosque.

12pm: BN candidate Azahar Ibrahim visits handicraft workshop at Bukit Mambai.

1.15pm: Deputy premier performs Friday prayers at Kampung Tenang Station mosque.

2.30pm: Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein said that the Special Branch and anti-terrorist unit has began its probe a report which claims on whether PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim has links with international terrorist groups.

He said this to reporters after Friday prayers at Felda Chemplak mosque.

3pm: Normala to attend bubur lambuk (savoury porridge) handout programme at Felda Tenang before attending a telematch at Felda Chempelak at 4pm.

4pm: Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein hands out People Volunteers Corps (Rela) membership cards, membership forms and uniforms at Felda Chemplak Barat.

4.30pm: Education Minister Muhyiddin Yassin attends Parent-Teacher Association function at SMK Kamarul Ariffin, Labis.

At the press conference, he said that the education ministry will launch a probe into allegations Ma'arof Abd Mutalib, the husband of the PAS candidate for Tenang, has been misuing his medical leave certs to "campaign" with his wife.

"It's not that we are targetting him because his wife is a PAS candidate. If he wants to accompany his wife, that is his right. But the issue here is about misusing his MC," said Muhyiddin.

Ma'arof, a teacher, is husband to the PAS candidate Normala Sudirman.

He had previously had a run-in with the state education department when they gave him a 24-hour transfer notice out of Tenang to Johor Bahru, two hours' drive away, when speculation arose that his wife would be fielded.

4.45pm: The statement by PAS spiritual leader Nik Aziz Nik Mat, who described those who do not vote for PAS as 'jahiliah' or
ignorant, has offended all Muslims in the country.

According to Bernama, Muhyiddin said Nik Aziz had abused Islam by issuing various 'fatwa' or edicts which contradicted the religion according to the circumstances and time.

"The statement by Nik Aziz ridicules us merely because we don't support PAS. Is Nik Aziz labelling all the voters in Labis as ignorant?" he was quoted as saying at a media conference at the SMK Kamarul Ariffin.

The Kelantan menteri besar was said to have used the word 'jahiliah' at a media conference in Kampung Redong yesterday, while campaigning for the Tenang by-election.

The deputy prime minister said Nik Aziz had issued various deviationist edicts including stating that PAS supporters could not consume any meat slaughtered by Umno members.

"But in the Tenang state constituency, we see that PAS people are eating in shops run by Umno members," he said, adding that Nik Aziz had also issued a fatwa prohibiting women to become candidates in the general election.

5pm: PAS candidate is scheduled to meet voters at Kampung Air Panas

5pm: Youth and Sports Minister Ahmad Shabery Cheek attends 1Malaysia Futsal event at Felda Chemplak

7pm: Malaysia Makkal Sakti Party (MMSP) and a group of residents are forced to cancel their plan to burn literature textbook Interlok at Sri Subramaniam temple in Tenang.

The party's leader, R Kannan, when contacted, said the activity was not allowed by the temple's management.

"So we will instead organise a special prayer session later tonight for God to intervene and remove the book," he said.

Also in attendance are Klang MP Charles Santiago and Selangor exco member Dr Xavier Jayakumar.

There was also some confusion over the book burning, with the lawmakers saying that they are against the actions.

“There will be no book burning today,” says Santiago.

He adds that the prayers were merely to seek “wisdom and divine intervention from god for the government to retract Interlok as a textbook”.

7.30pm: BN candidate Azahar Ibrahim visits Labis pasar malam.

8pm: Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein attends BBQ dinner with youths at Felda Chemplak before attending a function by Tamil youth function at Taman Tenang.

8pm: The festive celebration night ‘Malam Mesra 1 Malaysia Sambutan Tahun Baru Cina' organised by JKKK Labis, at the Dataran Labis, attracted a strong crowd of 500 people.

The response is so overwhelming that some 80 people are forced to stand.

They were entertained by New Year songs, dances, and a two-minute fireworks display.

The MCA president Chua Soi Lek is the star of the night, he spent approximately five minutes to greet the voters.

Chua delivered his speech at 8.40pm. In his address, he urged the crowd not to vote for PAS, as this equalled support for its Islamic state.

He said Umno then would think the Chinese comminity can accept an Islamic state, and the PM and DPM will no longer talk about 1Malaysia, and instead they will begin to talk about Islamic policy.

Chua later denied the festive night function is organised by the mysterious NGO 1Malaysia, when interviewed by reporters.

The NGO was claimed to have caused the defeat of Pakatan at the Galas by-election.

During the interview, the place was hit by a power outage for 10 minutes.

There is a widespread rumour that Chua had told his supporters he would resign if Chinese votes became reduced by the polling date.

He confronted the Malaysiakini reporter again, saying, “It seems like Malaysiakini knows more than me, you always describe me as stupid.

“You can come to (ask) me if the votes are reduced.”

8.20pm: DAP is holding its biggest dinner for this by-election in a restaurant in Labis town centre, for which all 100 tables have been sold out and 1,000 people are attending.

There are also around 100 people standing outside the restaurant to hear the ceramah by leaders like Lim Kit Siang, Anwar Ibrahim, Nik Aziz Nik Mat and Nga Kor Ming.

One of the first few leaders to speak, PKR deputy president Azmin Ali, has criticised Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein for ordering the police to investigate Anwar over the alleged link with terrorists.

“He was accused of being a Jewish agent previously, but now he has become an Islamic agent. Which one you want to accuse?

“I want to tell Hishammuddin, you not need to investigate Anwar’s links with other islamic leaders, you should investigate your boss on his relationship with Altantuya.”

8.40pm: At the DAP dinner, Nga criticised Chua for playing up the issue of hand-shaking and painting PAS as conservative because they don’t want to respect others on the culture of handshaking.

“(If it was true,) then we should have a lunch here this Chinese New Year and have a beer and pork treat. If Najib doesn’t want to come, then he is extremist.”

Nga challenged Najib to approve the Segamat Chinese community's demand to build a new independent Chinese high school in the coming 48 hours.

“If he doesn't approve, we shall sing Sudirman (Arshad)'s song to Azahar. 'Balik kampung, oh... balik kampung'. We shall send Umno to the National Museum and MCA to the Nirvana Memorial Park (Chinese burial ground).”

9.00pm: At Dataran Labis, Chua Soi Lek delivers congratulatory letters signed by PM Najib Razak to to 21 students from SRKJ(C) Labis who scored 7As.

9.10pm: Although Nik Aziz was initially expected to speak at the DAP dinner, the announcer has just announced that he is unable to attend because he not feeling well. As his replacement, Mohamad Sabu will take the stage.

9.20pm: Anwar Ibrahim welcomed by the crowd like a superstar.

Immediately after he sat down, his table was surrounded by a crowd asking to take photographs with him.

9.30pm: Abdul Hadi Awang and Lim Guan Eng arrive at the dinner. The whole crowd stand up and greet them with cheering and applause. The atmosphere is full of heat as if Pakatan had won the by-election.

9.35pm: The table where Anwar, Hadi and Lim are sitting is still surrounded by the crowd who want to take their photographs.

9.40pm: Chua Soi Lek left Dataran Labis.

10.15pm: Former PKR Youth leader turned Umno man Ruslan Kassim gives his ceramah in Felda Tenang to a crowd of 80.

After a sumptuous kenduri prepared by the local Umno branch, he tells the voters not to be enticed by Pakatan Rakyat’s sweet words.

“I refuse to call them Pakatan Rakyat. They are just Pakatan Pembangkang. They’ll just oppose everything even if it benefits the race, country, religion and children,” he says.

Heaping praise on former PKR supreme council member Zaid Ibrahim, Ruslan says if even Zaid can’t trust Anwar, no one should.