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KUALA LUMPUR (AP) - CAMPAIGNING reached a climax Friday for Malaysia's general elections, which the ruling coalition is certain to win despite expected losses in some districts due to anger among the Chinese and Indian minorities over race and religion.
At stake in Saturday's elections are 222 seats in the Parliament. Twelve of Malaysia's 13 states will also go to the polls simultaneously to elect state legislatures. Most of the results will be known by early Sunday. Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi was scheduled to meet with fishermen and visit a mosque in the northern state of Penang later on Friday, making last-minute contact with his constituents before the end of campaigning at midnight. His deputy Najib Razak was to inaugurate a clinic and meet with schoolteachers and senior citizens in Pahang, another northern state. Unlike other parliamentary democracies, campaigning is low-key in Malaysia, largely because the weak opposition has little money to push through its message, and the ruling National Front has little need to prove its credentials. The National Front has won every election since independence in 1957, and is expected to win again even though it is unlikely to repeat its 2004 performance when it captured 91 per cent of Parliamentary seats. Ms Tricia Yeoh, director of the Center for Public Policy Studies think-tank, predicted the opposition would win between 35 and 38 seats in Parliament, nearly doubling the 19 seats it held before Parliament was dissolved. 'There should be a swing in these seats' due to Chinese and Indians voting for the opposition, Ms Yeoh said. 'That's the fear of the BN ... The Chinese and Indian votes will be the important swing votes,' she said. A reduced majority for the National Front in Parliament would be seen as a personal rebuke for Mr Abdullah, who has lost much of the goodwill he received when he took office in 2003, replacing longtime leader Mahathir Mohamad. Mr Abdullah has been blamed for failing to properly manage inflation, crime, corruption and most importantly ethnic tensions between the minorities and the majority Malays. Muslim Malays make up 60 per cent of Malaysia's 27 million people, and form the bulk of voters for Mr Abdullah's United Malays National Organisation. The party dominates the National Front coalition, which includes Chinese- and Indian-based parties in a power-sharing arrangement that has ensured racial peace in this multiethnic country. But the minorities have complained of increasing discrimination, citing a 37-year-old affirmative action programme for Malays that shows no sign of being diluted despite their rising standards of living. The programme gives Malays preference in government jobs, business, education and religion. The Chinese and Indians are also angry at a string of court decisions in religious disputes that have gone in favor of Malays. Indians were incensed by the demolition of Hindu temples by authorities last year. 'The problem is not with the Malays. The problem is with the corrupt leadership of this country,' opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim told a rally in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday night. Mr Anwar, a former deputy prime minister under Dr Mahathir, promised to end racial discrimination if his People's Justice Party wins, a virtually impossible scenario. 'We want strong Malays, strong Chinese, strong Indians ... Take the best Malays, let them work with the best Chinese and the best Indians,' he said to roaring applause. At another rally on Thursday night in Chinese-dominated Penang, the opposition Democratic Action Party drew some 30,000 people, compared to a few thousand at a speech by Prime Minister Abdullah earlier. 'I think we have broken some new ground,' said Mr Jeff Ooi, a DAP candidate. 'We are still hoping that the massive crowds will translate into votes. People are disappointed with how the government has been run in the past few years. People are dissatisfied with the inequitable distribution of wealth and opportunities.' Still, large crowds at opposition rallies do not always translate into votes. 'It's your choice but I hope the people think carefully,' Mr Abdullah told his rally, warning that the minorities will have no voice in the coalition if they do not vote for the Front. - STRAITS TIMES
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Hi Guys...
Those who are computer savvy...
Please post again a combi of images of last year's incidents at Trengganu, Bersih Rally, Hindraft, especially images with open injuries with Life’s juice flowing……
THEN…… ' flood ' these images to all sites...
...." A PICTURE PAINTS A 1000 WORDS ".... By Bread..
………….IT’LL BE KNAP SHOT…………..!!!
Good Luck !
...............