It is understood that BN might give the seat — with a significant Indian vote — to Umno, and will provide a different seat to MIC, whose deputy president, Datuk G. Palanivel, stood there in Election 2008.
PR will stick to PKR contesting the seat that Zainal Abidin had won with a wafer-thin majority of 198 in the last elections. But the party is keen to present a strong candidate to keep the seat and stem its loss, following the departure of four federal lawmakers, who are now independents.
“This will be an interesting by-election to watch, especially in the current situation,” political analyst, Associate Professor Dr Sivamurugan Pandian, told The Malaysian Insider.
BN has 137 lawmakers in the 222-seat Dewan Rakyat, while PR only has 78, after three PKR men turned independent and another was kicked out of the party. There are now five independents and two SAPP lawmakers in Parliament.
A senior PR leader admitted as much, saying, “There will be a lot of horse-trading in both coalitions for the best candidate, whose victory will boost the winning coalition’s confidence.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, he said the Indian electorate’s unpredictability will complicate the campaigning in the seat.
“The Indian vote is difficult,” the leader conceded, alluding to the coalition’s loss in the Bagan Pinang state seat by-election, where the Indians swung to support Tan Sri Isa Samad’s political comeback to win for Umno.
Palanivel has been campaigning for the seat, despite his narrow loss in Election 2008.
“I will work even harder to wrest the seat back for BN,” he said when contacted last night.
“I am ready, I have been working and serving the people non-stop.”
Zainal Abidin, who suffered from brain cancer, passed away last night at his home in 9, 1/2, Jalan Cheras, Kajang, and leaves behind a wife, Datin Siti Zaharah Mohd Zin and four children.
He was 71.
The Dewan Rakyat Speaker will have to inform the Election Commission, which will then call for a by-election within 60 days,
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak had launched Umno’s Juara Rakyat campaign to win votes there last February, promising RM15 million to repair the roofs of public flats in the constituency,
Pakatan Rakyat de facto leader, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, has also spoken there at ceramahs and promised services after the PKR MP fell ill.
Analysts say the Malay vote is evenly split between the rival coalitions, so the significant Indian minority will be crucial to both.
Zainal Abidin was an Umno Hulu Langat state assemblyman from 1990 before being dropped from contesting the 2004 election.
He served as deputy mentri besar from 1995 to 1999 and was also in the state executive council under the then-mentri besar, Datuk Seri Khir Toyo.
Zainal Abidin crossed over to PKR in 2005 following a fall out with Umno.
courtesy of Malaysian Insider
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