Why BN has to wait for 20 years to fulfil a promise?

But will BN still fulfil it after lying for the last 20 years.

A liar is always a liar. People should learn this.

Only idiots will keep on trusting anyone who has ever lied to them
once, let alone those that keep on lying for the last 20 years.

Similarly for Batang Air in Sarawak.
I don't think BN will ever keep its promise to develop Batang Air or
any Dayak area unless it loses big this time.

Why should BN fulfill its promise at great expense when the Dayak
voters keep on voting for BN for the last more than 20 years?

The great expense is in spending Sarawak resources for Sarawak
especially the interior Dayaks. After all, it is well documented and
proclaimed proudly that Sarawak is not worth developing because it is
not economical. It is only worthwhile to extract its resources cheaply
to be used by Malaya. You can read the photographed article in my blog
at sabahcolonised.blogspot.com.

If BN loses in Batang Air, there is some hope that other Dayak areas
will be developed to the level that is normal all over the world such
as what is happening in Indonesian Kalimantan. At least there are some
Dayaks who are clever enough to see if BN fulfil its promises since
more than 20 years ago in order to vote BN this time.

For Malayans who believe that it is a waste of money and resources to
develop Batang Air, please note that by developing this region, such
as building roads, electricity, water and education, it will improve
the productivity of the people here making them better consumers for
all Malaysians. Read OBAMA arguments.

Making the rich even richer will only destroy a nation, even as
powerful as USA, as Bush had done with his policies of supporting the
rich in the hope that they will develop the nation. In reality, it is
a fallacy as proven by the sorry state of US economy under Bush
administration, compared to the much more prosperous Clinton
Administration.

Now back to Bukit Gantang. Is it really a local that is representing
them? The candidate appears to be only a local information chief at
that. What has happened to the UMNO chief or his assistants?

What is the real story behind selecting this particular person who
cannot even get the vote of the majority of UMNO members in Bukit
Gantang?

Bkt Gantang folks torn between local and ousted Perak MB
By SAODAH ELIAS

TAIPING: Will Bukit Gantang Folks finally choose a local to air their
grouses in Parliament after 23 years, or will history repeat itself?

All will be answered by 10pm Tuesday when the result for Bukit Gantang
by-election is announced.

Barisan Nasional candidate Ismail Saffian is a local unlike Nizar who
is a registered voter in Pasir Panjang where he is also its state
assemblyman.

Another, independent candidate Kamarul Ramizu Idris is from Taiping,
but he is not considered a factor in the by-election.

Ismail, who is Bukit Gantang Umno information chief, is from Kampung
Kubu, Bukit Gantang while his wife is from Changkat Ibol in the same
constituency.

The choice of an outsider as a candidate has been oft cited by many
state Umno leaders as the main reason why Barisan lost in the last
general election.

Barisan had fielded Umno's treasurer Datuk Mohd Azim Zabidi from the
Bukit Bintang division as its candidate then, much to the anger of the
local Barisan supporters who had had to contend with "imported"
candidates for four consecutive general elections.

Mohd Azim lost to the late PAS' Roslan Shaharum by 1,566 votes.

In 2004, Barisan fielded Wanita Gerakan chief Datuk Tan Lian Hoe in
Bukit Gantang.

Despite grumbling on the ground, the people of Bukit Gantang had voted
her in after being promised that a local would be fielded in the next
general election.

Despite the intense campaigning and various shows of strengths by both
sides in the last eight days, the outcome, in as far as Bukit Gantang
Umno division head Datuk Rosli Husin is concerned, is clear. The local
must win.

"Barisan will win. This is our stronghold and the people will choose
our candidate," he said.

Rosli who is the state assemblyman for Trong, one of the three state
constituencies under Bukit Gantang said there was no longer any reason
for the people of Bukit Gantang to vote for PAS as their wait of more
than 20 years for a local representative was now close at hands.

Similarly confident is Barisan director of election for Bukit Gantang
Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.

He said Nizar's only hope of winning was to play on people's sympathy.

"He portrays himself as the victim, as the ousted mentri besar.

But that gimmick can only go so far.

"People now have a better understanding of the whole fiasco as we have
already explained to them what exactly happened and they are now back
with us," he stated.

Close to the ground however, campaigners on both sides were not that
confident of a win, one way or the other.

Statistics being bandied about by both sides was 50/50. Unlike the
Kuala Terengganu by-election in January, where the deciding factor was
said to have been the 11% Chinese votes, here in Bukit Gantang, the
intense campaigning was for the 63% Malay votes.

It is said that close to 60% of Malay voters are for Barisan while
about 70% of Chinese voters are with PAS.

Even as campaign period draws to a close, PAS national election
director Datuk Mustafa Ali said they needed to work very hard to
capture the hearts and minds of the Malay voters.

The by-election is called following Roslan's death of heart failure on
Feb 9.

Bukit Gantang has 55,562 voters comprising Malays (63.5 per cent),
Chinese (27.1 per cent), Indians (9.1 per cent) and others (0.3 per
cent).

The majority of the people in this constituency are involved in
agriculture while a significant percentage of its Chinese populace in
Kuala Sepetang are fishermen.

Many of the youths from this area have left to work in larger towns
and cities, including Penang, Ipoh and Kuala Lumpur.