PUTRAJAYA: Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail today admitted that Pakatan Harapan's (PH) chances in winning the Cameron Highlands parliamentary by-election on Jan 26 is slim.
The Deputy Prime Minister said this was because Barisan Nasional (BN), apart from fielding an Orang Asli as its candidate, also harped on local sentiments.
"Well, we have always had difficulty before we came into government. But, it is a little more difficult now because they (BN) are playing local sentiments. I met them (the Semai people) recently. Of course, it (difficulty) is a part of the contest.
"And what we offer at least if they vote for us, it is good enough," she told reporters after launching the Malaysia Positive 2019 Convention here today.
Wan Azizah was commenting on the chances of PH candidate M. Manogaran winning the parliamentary seat where he will face a four-cornered fight with BN candidate Ramli Mohd Nor and two independent candidates.
She said Manogaran's chances were still good because of the change in government at the federal level.
Asked if disciplinary action would be taken against PKR Senator Bob Manolan Mohd following claims that he had allegedly threatened a group of Orang Asli village headmen in Cameron Highlands recently, Dr Wan Azizah said she would leave the matter to the new president, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
She said she had spoken to Bob Manolan on the matter and told that it was not what he meant.
“On disciplinary action, I will leave it to the new president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim. But we do not agree with him (Bob Manolan) making threats. We have to be careful what we say,” she said.
Asked to comment on photos of a woman clad in a PH T-shirt who was seen giving out money in Cameron Highlands, she said reporters should verify the authenticity of the photographs.
“Really? Anyone can wear the T-shirt and hand out (money) and also get a photograph taken. So, you need to go and check further. But we have already told our staff not to break the law in the by-election,” Wan Azizah said.
Earlier, in her speech at the launch of the convention, Dr Wan Azizah said the failure of a government stems from its inability to identify and adopt the right position with the people.
She said a direct result of the spread of false information was that it led to doubts among the people, increasing racial sentiments, and finally causing racial and religious disharmony.
“One of the outcomes of a positive mind is the ability to sieve through information. There is a lot of false information on the social media. We should learn from the May 13 incident and we do not want a repeat of it.” she said. -- BERNAMA