 KERDAU, Mar 4: Parti Keadilan Rakyat has strongly condemned violence displayed last night during a visit by Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim to Kerdau, where his vehicle was surrounded by some 30 UMNO supporters who shouted obscenities and threw objects.SWEAR TIME ... A group of youths, in this image published by a pro-UMNO website, carrying UMNO banners and placards containing lewd remarks, March 3.
PKR's Temerloh chairman Ahmad Nizam Hamid said the men, carrying Barisan Nasional banners and flags, threw stones and nails. Earlier, Nizam said nails were deliberately strewn on roads leading to Felda's Jengka 22 settlement, where Anwar's speech had been widely anticipated by locals, causing more than 50 motorcycles and cars punctured along the way. “They also uttered lewd words against Anwar. This is a new culture, because in Pahang, we have never seen this before,” said Nizam. It was however not the first time a by-election in Pahang has been marred by obscenities during campaigning. On March 21, 2000, during nomination day for the Sanggang by-election which pitted PAS's Hishamuddin Yahaya against UMNO's religious scholar Redzwan Harun, the Pahang Menteri Besar Adnan Yaakob created a storm when he showed lewd gestures at Opposition supporters. FLASHBACK MARCH 2000 ... Adnan in the now infamous picture Pictures of his hand gestures were immediately published in opposition papers and widely distributed on the internet. An unrepentant Adnan however refused to express regret, blaming PAS supporters of provocation. Praise for police Nizam said an election campaign should have been a "celebration of democracy", not "this nonsense and uncivilised behaviour of UMNO-BN supporters".
“UMNO is growingly becoming immature and have stooped to the lowest point," he added.
Nizam however reiterated that Pakatan Rakyat supporters had managed to avoid the provocations, and praised police personnel who had taken immediate action to disperse the unruly crowd from hurting passers-by. The crowd listening to Anwar’s speech last night gathered only few metres from a smaller event organised by UMNO which starred Ummi Halfida, the woman who was instrumental in levelling vile accusations against Anwar in 1998. Ummi had earlier this week addressed UMNO supporters in Merlimau, Melaka, where she induldged in her trademark name-calling and abuse of Anwar. |
