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I am very touched, encouraged and uplifted by the great support of the people of Ipoh Timor and Kinta Valley who contributed RM16,031.36 at the Chin Woo ceramah last night to make Perak the second front-line state to restore meaningful democracy, ensure Abdullah deliver his promise of clean and good governance as well as preserve the 46-year Merdeka “social contract” of Malaysia as a secular democracy with Islam as official religion but not an Islamic State Media Conference Statement by Lim Kit Siang (Ipoh, Saturday): I am very touched, encouraged and uplifted by the great support of the people of Ipoh Timor and Kinta Valley who contributed RM16,031.36 at the Ipoh Timor election Chin Woo ceramah last night to make Perak the second front-line state to restore meaningful democracy, ensure Abdullah deliver his promise of clean and good governance as well as preserve the 46-year Merdeka “social contract” of Malaysia as a secular democracy with Islam as official religion but not an Islamic State. This is the single biggest public contribution at any DAP ceramah or function in the 38-year history of the DAP and is an earnest that DAP can enter into a historic partnership with the people of Ipoh Timor, Kinta Valley and Perak in the 21st century for the voice of Ipoh, Kinta Valley and Perak to be heard loud and clear on behalf of all Malaysians to demand justice, freedom, democracy and good governance, and most importance of all, that the country keep faith with the Merdeka “social contract” not to turn Malaysia into an Islamic State. I have been told that despite the coming of the “big guns” and “heavy artillery” like the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, former Prime Minister, Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad, MCA President, Ong Ka Ting, former MCA President, Ling Liong Sik, Gerakan President, Lim Keng Yaik, I have turned the corner and that I would win Ipoh Timor. The huge crowds in Ipoh Timor, Kinta Valley and Perak wherever the DAP has fielded candidates are most encouraging, but the history of Malaysian elections has shown that it is not always that huge rally or ceramah crowds during election campaigns could be translated into votes – and I will not be certain about the outcome of the Battle for Ipoh Timor until the votes are counted. However, the Battle for Ipoh Timor is not meant just to win the Ipoh Timor parliamentary seat, but is to be the springboard to achieve our Kinta Valley target of four Parliamentary and 12 State seats and the larger Perak objective of seven parliamentary and 18 state seats. This is why I was not campaigning in Ipoh Timor this morning, but in Ipoh Barat, visiting together with the DAP parliamentary candidate for Ipoh Barat, M. Kulasegaran, the Kampong Tawas and Buntong markets. I should be campaigning in Ipoh Timor “fighting for my political life”, and undoubtedly I have not been able to visit most places in Ipoh Timor. I apologise to the voters of Ipoh Timor that I am unable to visit most of the voters and areas in Ipoh Timor in the short 7 ½ day campaign and ask for understanding and the people’s blessing – as I have to campaign not only in Ipoh Timor but also in Ipoh Barat, Batu Gajah and the other parliamentary seats which are the targets of the “Perak as Second Front-line State” project. Election campaign for the shortest and therefore the most unfair 11th general election in the 46-year nation history – 7 ½ days – ends at midnight, and the voters will decide the future destiny of the nation not just for the next five years, but for the next 10, 20 and even 30 years to come! I wish to protest in the strongest possible terms at the unfairness of the first general election of the fifth Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi. I had to cover even up to five ceramahs a night, sleeping three hours out of 24 hours a day, reaching a state where I just slept when reading reports or newspapers. Sometimes, I was so tired that I cannot even think straight, unable to remember the most ordinary of things. Why should Abdullah conduct such an unfair and undemocratic election with only 7 ½-day campaign period, especially when the Election Commission is not ready to conduct a professional and efficient general election? I am worried that the general election tomorrow will be the most chaotic and confusing of all 11 general elections, with a faulty electoral roll, slipshod or last-minute planning about various aspects of the election and polling day – creating the most unthinkable inconveniences and hassle to the ordinary voter. This is why I had rang up the Election Commission Chairman, Tan Sri Rashid yesterday proposing that the Election Commission should postpone the polling day by five to seven days, to ensure first that every voter knows whether he is a voter and where he could cast his vote, instead of creating unprecedented confusion, chaos, anxiety, frustration and anger on polling day tomorrow.
* Lim Kit Siang, DAP National Chairman |