Do not be influenced by findings of independent survey bodies — PM

BERA: Voters should not be influenced by the predictions or findings of independent survey bodies on the sentiment of voters’ acceptance of Barisan Nasional (BN) which they claimed was trailing in the 15th general election (GE15) as they are only propagandas of certain parties.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said the findings, which were widely circulated on social media, could also be seen as psychological warfare by the opposition parties to attract voters, especially those who are still sitting on the fence, to support them.

“The prediction is propaganda and we have to see which direction they tend to incline to. Every party is engaging a company to conduct its respective survey, so if they (involved companies) are paid by the relevant parties, then their reports would be seen as getting more support for the party.

“For me, we should not be influenced (by the findings of the studies),” he said at a press conference after attending the Mengkarak Sembang Santai Programme, here Wednesday.

Ismail Sabri said this when asked to comment on several reports of independent bodies and observers predicting the people’s acceptance of political parties contesting GE15, and they claimed that BN was lagging behind in winning parliamentary seats compared to its rival parties.

Meanwhile, Ismail Sabri who is also the BN Bera parliamentary seat candidate said for the final phase of the GE15 campaign, the BN machinery needs to further promote the offers outlined in the manifesto especially on social media to ensure that the people remain supportive of the coalition.

He said the effort to ‘sell BN products’ besides working hard to counter and explain to the people regarding accusations or propaganda thrown by the opposition needs to be strengthened, including on social media because the platform involves a lot of young people.