Penang state poll will be Pas' downfall - Penang Umno Youth chief
KUALA LUMPUR - The brazen, boorish and controversial Kedah-Penang claim often touted by Kedah Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Muhammad Sanusi Mohd Nor will be Pas’ downfall in the coming Penang poll.
This was the forecast by Penang Umno youth chief Mohd Hilmi Elias, who insisted that Sanusi’s remark about wanting Kedah to reclaim Penang did not settle well with the Penangites.
On May 29, Sanusi reportedly said that Kedah and Penang do not have a border because Penang was still Kedah's possession and he claimed that Kedah only has a border with Perak and Perlis.
“In his bid to shore up more support and up his popularity, he has inadvertently affected the perception of the Malays in Penang towards Pas as well.
“Prior to this, Sanusi picked a fight with Penang over the water supply that the state gets from the rivers in Kedah but these days you hardly hear him harping on the issue anymore.
“Why? Because Kedah has water supply problems. So, it shows that Sanusi is good at toying and riling up emotions,” Hilmi, who is also Umno youth exco, said in an exclusive interview with Sinar Daily.
On top of that, he added, it was statistically impossible for Pas to win Penang as there were only 15 Malay majority seats out of the entire 40 seats in the state.
“Everyone needs to remember that Pas only put up 15 candidate seats. In fact, Pas would need to win at least 21 seats which I do not think will happen,” Hilmi stressed.
Speaking on what has been remarked by the Umno youth chief Dr Muhamad Akmal Saleh, in his fiery speech - he demanded that DAP show proof that the party would not repeat any of its anti-Malay and anti-Islam remarks that were spewed in the past, Hilmi added that this was a normal politics and youth should celebrate all opinions.
“Umno Youth has young blood. This demand is from the bottom of our hearts. We spoke in our homes (Umno’s HQ), and I agree with Dr Akmal that this is not a big issue and we should be tolerant of each other,” he said.
