DAP parliamentary leader Lim Kit Siang has advised Pakatan Rakyat to focus on tackling BN’s corruption instead of pushing the Islamic state agenda in order to win the middle ground in the upcoming general election.

pas posters in kota bharu 240208 To back his argument, Lim cited that in 2001 when PAS passed hudud in Terengganu, this did not stop BN from recapturing the state in the 2004 general election by winning 28 out of 32 state seats and seven out of eight parliamentary seats.

“The hudud issue led to the dismantling of the Barisan Alternatif and it took the historic 2008 general election to bring together the three parties again,” he said in a statement today.

Another factor which has hurt the opposition in the past was the multi-corner fights as a result of failed seat negotiations, which had probably cost the opposition at least two parliamentary seats in Sarawak and another two in Sabah in 2008, and as many as five state seats in Sabah.

“The emphasis for Pakatan to succeed in the battle for Putrajaya is to win over the swing voters/middle ground by focusing on national issues of importance,” he stressed.

The Ipoh Timor MP elaborated that the national issue that can help Pakatan to win new voters and swing voters is that which coalition can manage and reduce corruption, foster genuine national unity and inter-racial harmony, govern more equitably with social justice and economic efficiency, reduce poverty among the native population in Sabah and Sarawak and bring more sustainable development to both of these states, and usher in a new era of governance where democracy is developed and deepened.

The veteran politician also presented his analysis of the impact of the three million new voters,  60 percent of whom are under the age of 30, in the 13th general election.

“New voters will comprise 25 percent of the electorate in the next general election. Together with the 10 percent or so of the swing voters from the 2008 general election, they will constitute about four million voters in the next general election.

azlan “These voters will decide on who will govern in Putrajaya after the 13th general election,” he said.

For Pakatan to capture Putrajaya with a comfortable majority, it must win 70 percent of the new voters and swing an additional of three percent of voters who have voted in the 2008 general election, giving it 119 parliamentary seats compared to 103 of BN, claimed Lim.

Under this scenario, Lim explained that PKR would remain the largest party, followed by DAP and PAS.