Malaysia general election today

Malaysian opposition bets on ‘tsunami’ of Muslim support

KUALA PILAH: Malaysia's opposition hopes a surge of support from disillusioned members of the country's Muslim majority can carry them to an unlikely victory in today's elections, reports AFP.

The optimism has been triggered by the decision of 92-year-old former leader Mahathir Mohamad, a champion of the country's Muslim Malays, to run as the opposition's prime ministerial candidate.

They believe his connection to rural Muslim voters can trigger what they have dubbed a "Malay tsunami" and unseat Prime Minister Najib Razak's coalition after six decades in power.

Amid escalating anger over a massive financial scandal, Mahathir came out of retirement to take on his former protege Najib, upending an election race that had long looked like an easy win for the government.

Malays, who make up some 60 percent of the country's 32 million people, have long formed the bedrock of support for Najib's Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition, and winning over the group is key to victory in a Malaysian election.

BN has pushed policies that favour Malays over the country's substantial ethnic Chinese and Indian minorities, supporting them with financial handouts and priority in securing government jobs.The opposition, which has sought to project a more multi-racial image, has been unable to mobilise support among rural Malays, adding to difficulties of trying to unseat a deeply entrenched government.

But the decision of Mahathir, who ruled Malaysia with an iron fist for 22 years, to join the opposition is threatening Najib's Muslim support base as anger grows over soaring living costs and corruption.

In the small town of Kuala Pilah, Malay businessman Abdul Moktar Awalluddin said he had dropped his life-long support for Najib's United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), the main party in the ruling coalition.

 

Malaysia general election today

Malaysian opposition bets on tsunami of Muslim support

KUALA PILAH: Malaysias opposition hopes a surge of support from disillusioned members of the countrys Muslim majority can carry them to an unlikely victory in todays elections, reports AFP. The optimism has been triggered by the decision of 92-year-old former leader Mahathir Mohamad, a champion of the countrys Muslim Malays, to run as the oppositions prime ministerial candidate. They believe his connection to rural Muslim voters can trigger what they have dubbed a Malay tsunami and unseat Prime Minister Najib Razaks coalition after six decades in power. Amid escalating anger over a massive financial scandal, Mahathir came out of retirement to take on his former protege Najib, upending an election race that had long looked like an easy win for the government. Malays, who make up some 60 percent of the countrys 32 million people, have long formed the bedrock of support for Najibs Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition, and winning over the group is key to victory in a Malaysian election. BN has pushed policies that favour Malays over the countrys substantial ethnic Chinese and Indian minorities, supporting them with financial handouts and priority in securing government jobs.The opposition, which has sought to project a more multi-racial image, has been unable to mobilise support among rural Malays, adding to difficulties of trying to unseat a deeply entrenched government. But the decision of Mahathir, who ruled Malaysia with an iron fist for 22 years, to join the opposition is threatening Najibs Muslim support base as anger grows over soaring living costs and corruption. In the small town of Kuala Pilah, Malay businessman Abdul Moktar Awalluddin said he had dropped his life-long support for Najibs United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), the main party in the ruling coalition.