MANJUNG, April 27 (Bernama) -- Perikatan Nasional (PN) should accept the reality and not make irrelevant excuses over the outcome of the Ayer Kuning state by-election (PRK) which did not favour them.
Barisan Nasional (BN) secretary-general Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abd Kadir said the claim that PN had succeeded in preventing BN from securing 18,000 votes was merely an excuse to cover the opposition party’s poor performance.
"The PN leadership should instead conduct a post-mortem to identify the real causes behind their defeat in the seat contested by PAS during the by-election.
"This is completely different from BN and the Unity Government, which have accepted previous by-election defeats with an open heart and a professional attitude," he told reporters after officiating the Closing Ceremony of the Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) TechnoXplorer 2025 programme at SMK Ahmad Boestamam here today.
Zambry, who is also the Minister of Higher Education, was commenting on the statement made yesterday by Perak PAS election director Mohd Fakhrudin Abd Aziz, who said PN had succeeded in blocking BN’s ambition to secure 18,000 votes in the by-election.
Meanwhile, UMNO vice-president Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani said the country's stability under the administration of the Unity Government was a key factor considered by the people in determining their support.
"For me, the Unity Government is still relatively new, and many remain suspicious. Our task is to show the people that, regardless of political differences, the most important thing is for the country to remain stable.
"What is the point of having a government that changes prime ministers two or three times? Not only the people, but also foreign investors would view the country as unstable. So how can we convince them to invest in the long term?" he said.
The Minister of Plantation and Commodities made these remarks to reporters after attending the Appreciation Ceremony of the National Kenaf and Tobacco Board (LKTN) in Kota Bharu, Kelantan, today.
Yesterday, BN candidate Dr Mohamad Yusri Bakir, who is also the Tapah UMNO Division secretary, won the Ayer Kuning by-election with a majority of 5,006 votes after securing 11,065 votes, defeating PN’s Abd Muhaimin Malek (6,059 votes) and Parti Sosialis Malaysia candidate Bawani KS (1,106 votes).
The outcome maintained Ayer Kuning as a BN stronghold, which it has held since 1986.
The by-election was held following the death of incumbent Ishsam Shahruddin, 58, on Feb 22.
-- BERNAMA
