Pakatan rode on crest of ‘ Felda tsunami’
> BN fails to defend ‘fortress’, loses settlers’ votes
PETALING JAYA: In the high-stakes battle for Felda voters’ support, Pakatan Harapan (PH) managed to make inroads and dented Barisan Nasional’s (BN) vote bank.
Before the the 14th general election, BN held 45 of the seats in Felda areas and was very confident that PH would not get the support of the settlers.
PH held four and PAS held three such seats after GE13.
BN leaders had promised to defend “Felda seats” from the onslaught of Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
Pahang BN chairman Datuk Seri Adnan Yaakob had said they were countering PH by giving the settlers land titles.
However, this failed to convince all the settlers to stay with BN as two seats in Pahang fell to PH, one of which was Bentong, that had been under MCA president Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai.
In Negri Sembilan, Barisan chairman Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan said although Felda had been making headlines for the wrong reasons, it would still remain as BN’s fortress.
BN not only lost two seats to PH in Kuala Pilah and Tampin, but also the state assembly.
Perak BN chief Datuk Seri Zambry Abd Kadir had vowed to defend all seats from the Opposition onslaught, but failed to do so.
The biggest surprise came in Johor, Umno’s bastion, as PH managed to win five seats while unseating MIC president Datuk Seri Dr S. Subramaniam in Segamat, MCA vice-president Datuk Chua Tee Yong in Labis, Johor exco member Datuk Ayub Rahmat in Sekijang and Gerakan secretary-general Datuk Liang Teck Meng in Simpang Renggam.
Not only did Johor BN lose many Felda seats, they were also unseated as the state government.
BN also lost its only Felda seat in Selangor, in Hulu Selangor, which was held by former deputy education minister Datuk P. Kamalanathan. BN also suffered losses of seats in Malacca and Kedah.
Roadshows by Mahathir and PKR president Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail and Amanah president Mohamad Sabu managed to convince enough Felda settlers that PH had their best interest at heart.