Heck, throw in the whole lot.
Perak, Penang and Kedah, too.
Who won, and how?
We know UMNO/BN did not.
Pakatan Rakyat?
They weren’t even a formal election pact then.
So who?
In January, 2009, I was in Kuala Terengganu for the bye-election.
BN had won the seat in the 12th GE.
As the group of bloggers and activists went on our ‘VOTE OUT BN’ walkabouts, especially in the Chinese areas, we heard the same thing again and again : if the people of Terengganu had known of the tsunami that was going to hit Selangor, Perak, Penang and Kedah in the 12th GE, they would have joined the tidal wave and denied BN Terengganu.
There you have it.
It was the huge number of voters in those 4 states who voted for change that won.
Sure, by default, DAP, PKR and PAS formed the government in those states.
By default.
Not because we loved the opposition or had full faith in them, but because the “Anything But BN” mood was so strong that we were determined to vote in anybody in their place.
I voted in PJ Selatan. Even as I asked “Who’s Hee?”, I voted for Hee Loy Sian.
Loh Gwo Burne was an eleventh hour Keadilan candidate for Kelana Jaya. The man behind the VK Lingam “Korek Korek Korek” video camera. He won? Why?
The overwhelming “Anything But BN” tsunami that swept through Kelana Jaya and every other seat, state and federal, in the 4 states won the day.
See it this way.
On polling day, 2 groups of voters vie for the spoils.
Those for change, and those who wish to maintain the status quo.
Those who want a new government, and those who want to retain BN.
In those 4 states, those who wanted to see change were victorious.
How?
First, understand this.
Cheating by UMNO/BN at the GE and state elections is nothing new. It has been going on for a long time.
In 1990, I was part of a team of lawyers who volunteered to patrol the polling stations in Kota Baru and report back on any cheating we saw. And boy, did we see a lot. By the way, notwithstanding the wholesale cheating, my late sis-in-law, Ilani Isahak, standing on a Semangat 46 ticket, trounced Tengku Ahmad Rithauddin in Kota Baru.
How?
A tsunami of voters who opted for change, so huge, that it was able to offset the cheating.
That was also what happened in Selangor, Perak, Penang and Kedah in 2008.
In all 4 states, the tidal wave for change was so huge, it was able to neutralise the cheating.
What of the other states?
Remember the feedback we got in Kuala Terengganu in January, 2009.
Information that had so angered voters in the 4 states enough to make them resolve to get rid of UMNO/BN had not reached the other states.
The fact of the tsunami reaching unstoppable proportions had not reached the other states.
In short, the media war to rid ourselves of UMNO/BN had been effective in those 4 states but had failed in the others.
In Selangor, Perak, Penang and Kedah, the good people had risen and were heard.
I’d like to hear your thoughts on this, before we look ahead to removing UMNO/BN.
Yes, I remain hopeful that we can still ABU this nation.
The People's Parliament 
ktwong87
May 15, 2016
It would be wonderful if UMNO-dominated BN is booted out of Putrajaya.
But would that ever come to pass? Azmin has been running rogue, more and more, cosying up to Hadi/PAS even as Hadi was cosying up to Najib.
And during the recent Sarawak state polls, Azmin reportedly authorised PKR to contest the 5 disputed seats in defiance of the Pakatan council decision, leading to the loss of all 5 and the Batu Kitang seat which DAP contested in retaliation,
Heck, if by some miracle Pakatan Harapan managed to win power, I shudder to ponder what “civil war” will take place if Azmin was still in the power structure of PKR, be it as deputy president, or worse, as president. The battle after victory may be even harder than the battle for victory.
bkho
May 15, 2016
Hello Haris, how are you Sir?
I might be overconfident, but I believe the Peninsular is there for the taking. Let’s not even think about East Malaysia.
Question is, is West Malaysia enough?
hannah montana da bomb
May 16, 2016
ABU has to be tweaked. The ABU spirit also made Pas very strong. I am sure you have noticed how overzealous supporters even made excuses for “Pas for all”. ABU, in a way, breathe life into the Pas monster.
singamabm
May 18, 2016
It was truly a tsunami of the people. While the opposition parties also played their part, they were primarily the beneficiaries something much bigger.
But right from the outset, they demonstrated that they would not be subservient to the will of the people. They even rejected the name chosen by the people. But that was a small thing. The big thing was the manner in which they treated the people after coming into office.
How many promises have been kept? How many broken? Do the people come first or are party interests paramount? In the Dewan, are they Wakil Rakyat or Wakil Parti? When was the last time your Wakil consulted you before voting on your behalf?
The primary driver of GE12 & GE13 may have been ABU. The trouble is ABU was translated into Any Donkey Will Do. And some real doozers got voted into office. We cannot blame anyone else for that.
One of the arguing points of voting for change was that we would be able to throw out those who fail to deliver. But today, we are told that we have no choice. It’s either the rock or the hard place.
Perhaps the time has come when we should no longer be subservient to party politics. Perhaps it’s time to evaluate the individual candidates. If the opposition parties, whatever they call their coalition, continue to insult the intelligence of the voters by offering inadequate candidates, then perhaps it’s time to revive the Third Force.
Let us begin a popular movement to educate the voting public on their right to evaluate those who wish to stand for office. Let us demand candidates of integrity who respect the wishes of the voters. If the parties fail to put up credible candidates, then let us support the candidacy of eminent members of Civil Society.
Let us take change to the next level.
SV Singam