JOHOR BAHRU - The wind of change in the support pattern of Malay voters in Pulai Parliament has begun to blow as the people have begun showing acceptance of the cooperation of Barisan Nasional (BN) and Pakatan Harapan (PH) to form a Unity government.
Umno supreme council member Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed said that the change was the result of the hard work of the Pulai division Umno machinery with the help of leaders from all over the country who held a series of talks during the campaign period over these two weeks.
"When the campaign started, I knew that one of the main challenges in this by-election was to convince the Malays, especially the Umno members in Pulai division, to accept a candidate from Amanah who is seen as a DAP proxy.
"Since 1969, when the late Tok Mat Rahmat became the first BN candidate in that parliamentary seat and I myself became a member of parliament for three terms from 2004 to 2018, Pulai people have been synonymous with working, campaigning, and voting for candidates from Umno.
"Suddenly this time, they had to work, campaign, and were asked to support a candidate from a party that had previously fought with Umno," he said in a statement on Facebook today.
The Pulai division Umno chief explained that everything has changed now that the current political scenario in the country has witnessed the departure of a single dominant party system that has been replaced by a coalition government.
"When BN cooperated with PH to form a Unity government that includes DAP, PKR, and Amanah, Umno supporters' worries increased.
"For decades, we have been fighting with DAP in Perling and Kempas state assemblies; suddenly we are working together in a new team.
"But this is a new political scenario not only in Malaysia but in most other countries, including the West. The single dominant party system had passed and was now being replaced by a coalition government," he said.
The Parliamentary Deputy Speaker added that all BN machinery had been mobilised to fill in the inadequate PH machinery in Pulai, especially from Amanah, which lacks grassroots members.
"I hope that Suhaizan will not forget that Umno people from Pulai were the ones who brought him to meet the grassroots Malay community and not those of PH ally parties.
"So now it is up to the PH machinery, especially DAP, to work harder in these final moments to attract as many Chinese voters as possible who have been their 'fixed deposit' in Pulai Parliament. DAP has to ensure that the Pulai seat held by their peers in PH will not fall into the hands of Perikatan Nasional (PN)," he said.
Jazlan also reminded PH that it needs Umno to rule.
"Once again, I would like to remind the non-Malay voters that PH needs Umno to govern. The Malays still fear the non-Malays. Only Umno can be the bridge that binds the government. Otherwise, the alternative is Pas," he said.