BN govt survives Chinese opposition — PM
KUALA LUMPUR: The Barisan Nasional (BN) government did not collapse even when most Chinese voted for Pakatan Rakyat in the just concluded 13th General Election (GE13), said Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.
He said Bumiputras and Indians were still supporting the BN and gave it their mandate to continue leading the country.
“The opposition, especially DAP, gave the impression to the Chinese that they can change the government by supporting the opposition but the reality was the government did not fall,” he told reporters after chairing a special meeting with BN newly- elected members of Parliament at Putra World Trade Centre ( PWTC) here yesterday.
The nearly two-hour closeddoor meeting was attended by BN deputy chairman Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin and secretarygeneral Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor.
Najib, who is also BN chairman, said although the Chinese vote for the DAP in some areas increased from 85 to 95 per cent, BN prevailed. He described the scenario portrayed by the opposition, especially DAP, as a ‘major deception’ of the Chinese.
“( This is) just like the Sept 16 promise (of Pakatan Rakyat capturing Putrajaya in 2008 through defection). The storyline (to change the government) is not correct and exaggerated - a lot of spinning,” he said.
The prime minister said another lie was a claim that 40,000 Bangladeshis were flown in to vote for BN.
“To fly in 40,000 Bangladeshis, we need 100 Boeing 747 as each plane can only accommodate 400 people,” he added.
Najib said there was no evidence to back the claim.
“This is a lie to the extent the people who cast their votes believed and were confident they had voted to save from Malaysia from being dominated by Bangladeshis,” he said.
Najib, who was sworn in as prime minister yesterday, said he believed if the Chinese supported the BN like in 2008, it was still not possible for the coalition to garner a two-thirds majority in GE13.
He also dismissed the notion of a large shift in the urban Malay sentiment which contributed to BN’s declining support as the Malay vote in urban areas had increased.
“A lot of polling district centres in Malay- dominated areas had strengthened compared to 2008.
“In 2008, Umno won 79 ( parliamentary seats), and this time 88 seats, meaning Malay votes had strengthened across the country,” he said, adding that to say Malay votes in urban areas had decreased was not quite correct.
“Not everyone supported BN, but by and large, the Malay support base had increased even in urban areas,” he said.
On ways to arrest the swing in Chinese votes, the prime minister said it would not be done in a hurry and that an in- depth study and discussions will be carried out with BN component parties. — Bernama