Poll result revs up Mahathir

By P. S. Suryanarayana

SINGAPORE, APRIL 3. The Malaysian Prime Minister, Dr. Mahathir Mohamad, on Sunday hailed the triumph of the ruling National Front in the Sanggang State byelection as a sign that the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), the coalition's main constituent, was back on course for regaining the political ground which it lost to an Islamist party in the November general election despite being able to retain power at the federal level at the time.

The byelection was held on Saturday and the authenticated result was known by the early hours on Sunday. The National Front candidate defeated a nominee of the Parti Islam se Malaysia (PAS), a fundamentalist religious- political outfit, which had made considerable inroads into the UMNO's traditional citadel in the heartland of the majority Malay community during the parliamentary and State elections last November.

The National Front registered a much bigger margin now. This, according to the Prime Minister and the UMNO president, was an indicator that the opposition-influenced sections of the majority Malays were now beginning to recognise that there had been no political vendetta behind Mr. Anwar Ibrahim's dismissal as Deputy Prime Minister in 1998 as also his arrest and prosecution.

Some political analysts in Kuala Lumpur did not, however, share this view, but they conceded that the National Front's success could be seen as an the first sign of a possible recovery from the bruises it received at the hands of the PAS last November. At a different level, analysts see the victory could boost the image of the Deputy Prime Minister, Mr. Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, who campaigned vigorously. He is being tipped to become a political heir-apparent to Dr. Mahathir.

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Section  : International
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