In Permatang Pauh
When thousands of hot-headed party faithful gather in one area, it is not surprising that emotions can get the better of even the most
level-headed person.
Thousands upon thousands of supporters of the opposition Pakatan Rakyat (PR) and ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) showed up early last Saturday morning
to witness the nomination of candidates for the Permatang Pauh by-election.
PR supporters easily outnumbered the BN ones, and were definitely a lot more creative in their banners. Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim
dressed as Bollywood superstars seemed to be a favourite theme.
Such is his star power.
We arrive early, but hundreds of cars were already parked on the emergency lane of the highway, as the supporters walked to the Tuanku
Bainun teachers training college that served as the nomination centre.
They were mostly PR supporters, as that was their designated route to the nomination centre. The BN supporters used another route.
However, the traffic route was such that many VIP BN cars had to pass the PR supporters to get to the centre. This made for many
uncomfortable moments as they were jeered, not surprisingly.
Transport Minister Ong Tee Keat wrote in his blog that he was jeered with vulgar remarks and lewd signs.
"I chose to smile at the jeers and profanities from the Pakatan's supporters, not because they did the right thing, but rather because I
was, to a certain extent, amused by the unreserved revelation of their crude, if not uncivilised, political culture and norms," he wrote.
After the nomination ended, the supporters were left to mingle as they walked out. And after hours shouting at each other, emotions were
still high. Tempers flared resulting in a clash between two press photographers and several men who appeared to be opposition
supporters.
The "violence" was relatively mild, though, and the situation was less tense than the Ijok by-election last year. But it showed how do-or-die
this by-election is turning out to be.
Anwar has set the bar high by labelling the by-election as his route to Putrajaya – the premiership of Malaysia - while Umno is playing the underdog.
This is just the start, and the campaign is expected to become hotter as it picks up momentum through the week.