Tongkat Ali of Life

At 1am this morning, the state DAP and PKR announced at a joint press conference that DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng, the new Bagan MP and Air Putih assemblyman, would lead the new state government.

The Opposition won 11 of Penang’s 13 parliamentary seats and 29 of 40 state seats.

DAP emerged the biggest victor, with seven parliamentary seats and 19 state seats while PKR won four parliamentary and nine state seats. PAS won one state seat.

The results came as a shock not just to the Barisan Nasional but also the Opposition as Penangites had thrown 90% support behind Barisan in the 2004 polls. The last time Penang fell to the Opposition was in 1969.

Umno retained two parliamentary seats - Kepala Batas and Tasek Gelugor - and 11 of the 15 state seats it contested.

Gerakan, which traditionally held the chief minister’s post, was completely wiped out, losing all 13 state and four parliamentary seats.

The big guns who fell were acting Gerakan president and outgoing Chief Minister Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon and the party’s secretary-general Datuk Seri Chia Kwang Chye.

Gerakan deputy secretary-general Datuk Lee Kah Choon, vice-president Datuk Dr Teng Hock Nan and Tanjung Gerakan division chief Teng Chang Yeow, who were earlier touted as possible candidates for the chief minister’s post were all defeated.

MCA, which contested 10 state seats and MIC, two, also lost all their seats.

Dr Koh, who was defeated by DAP’s Dr P. Ramasamy by 9,485 votes in the Batu Kawan parliamentary seat, said he accepted the people’s verdict.

“It was beyond our expectations,” he told a press conference in Batu Kawan.

He appealed to all Barisan component parties to accept the people’s decision without resorting to any actions that could jeopardise public security.

DAP national chairman Karpal Singh said they foresaw a strong opposition wave but had only expected to deny the Barisan of a two-thirds majority.

PKR president Datin Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail said they saw the pendulum swing coming and described the win as the people’s victory.

DAP captured the parliamentary seats of Bagan, Batu Kawan, Bukit Mertajam, Bayan Baru, Bukit Bendera, Bukit Gelugor and Tanjung.

State seats which fell to the DAP are Padang Kota, Pengkalan Kota, Komtar, Pulau Tikus, Tanjung Bunga, Air Putih, Air Itam, Paya Terubong, Datuk Keramat, Sungai Pinang, Batu Lancang, Seri Delima, Berapit, Padang Lalang, Sungai Puyu, Bagan Jermal, Bagan Dalam, Jawi and Perai.

PKR won the Permatang Pauh, Bayan Baru, Balik Pulau and Nibong Tebal parliamentary seats and the Batu Maung, Kebun Bunga, Batu Uban, Pantai Jerjak, Bukit Tengah, Bukit Tambun, Sungai Bakap, Penanti and Macang Bubuk state seats. PAS won the Permatang Pasir state seat.

By 8.30pm yesterday, word had already spread that the Opposition had won a simple majority to form the next state government and swept the bulk of the parliamentary seats.

KUALA LUMPUR: It was a day of shocks for Barisan Nasional as some of its big guns tumbled in the general election.

Though it had managed to secure a simple majority in parliament, the loose opposition alliance of the DAP, Pas and PKR managed to take control of Penang, Kedah, Selangor, Perak and retained Kelantan comfortably.

MIC president Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu, Gerakan acting president and outgoing Penang chief minister Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon and Wanita Umno deputy head Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil were among the main casualties for BN.

Samy Vellu lost the Sungai Siput parliamentary seat on his 72nd birthday, which virtually ended a long and colourful career in politics spanning more than 30 years.

Koh, who moved from a state seat to contest the Batu Kawan parliamentary seat, lost to DAP newcomer P. Ramasamy, while Shahrizat was also beaten by a newcomer, Nurul Izzah Anwar of PKR, in Lembah Pantai.
The tide against BN also saw the ruling coalition losing its two-thirds majority in parliament and suffering casualties in Information Minister Datuk Seri Zainuddin Maidin, Umno treasurer Datuk Seri Mohd Azim Zabidi, and deputy ministers Datuk M. Kayveas (Prime Minister’s Department) and Datuk Tan Chai Ho (Home Affairs).

However, the BN retained control of other states, although it saw some of its margins shaved from the previous election in 2004.

It reigned supreme in Johor, Sabah, Sarawak, Pahang, Malacca, Terengganu, Perlis and won Negri Sembilan by a simple majority.

But the sensation was in the unexpected defeats that took a huge toll on Umno’s main partners in the BN, namely the MCA, MIC and Gerakan.

MCA, which already did not have its deputy president Datuk Seri Chan Kong Choy and vice-president Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek in its lineup, was further crippled with the defeat of Tan, central committee member Datuk Fu Ah Kiow, deputy Wanita chief Datuk Chew Mei Fun and vice-president Datuk Donald Lim.

As for Gerakan, of the 12 parliamentary seats it contested, it lost 10 and won only in Gerik and Simpang Renggam. It also lost 26 of the 31 state seats it vied for.

Apart from Samy Vellu, all of the other top leaders in the MIC were also ousted - deputy president Datuk G Palanivel in Hulu Selangor, vice-president Datuk S. Sothinathan in Teluk Kemang, Youth chief S.A. Vigneswaran in Kota Raja and Wanita chief P. Komala Devi in Kapar.

Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi retained his seat in Kepala Batas as did his deputy Datuk Seri Najib Razak in Pekan.

They and other top BN leaders monitored the results from the BN’s headquarters at the Putra World Trade Centre.

The results and the upsets in many places put paid to opposition claims that the election process lacked transparency and that the Election Commission was biased towards the ruling coalition.

The results in Penang were stunning as it was the first time in 39 years that the opposition has managed to take over the state.

Koh, who was chief minister for 18 years, had an audience with the Yang di-Pertua Negeri Tun Rahman Abbas shortly before 9pm to concede defeat.

In 1969, Gerakan, which was then a newly formed opposition party, captured the state government, winning 16 of the 24 state seats, with Dr Lim Chong Eu as chief minister.

Up against the challenges of running an opposition state government and the political realities of the day, the party formed a coalition government two years later and shortly after, it joined the ruling federal coalition in an expanded Barisan Nasional.