Saturday, January 19, 2008

SATURDAY - 19TH JANUARY 2008 - POLLS IN 60 DAYS, SAYS KIT SIANG

POLLS in 60 days, says Kit Siang

KOTA KINABALU:
The DAP has predicted that the forthcoming general election will be held in less than 60 days, possibly between March 8 and 15. The Opposition party’s National Adviser, Mr Lim Kit Siang, said the prediction is based on a recent statement by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, who is Barisan Nasional (BN) Chairman, that the latter would be calling for the BN supreme council meeting. “Our prediction is that Parliament will be dissolved on March 3, followed by the nomination day four days later on March 7 and polling on March 15,” he told a news conference upon his arrival here from Kuala Lumpur yesterday. “We are also expecting that the Election Commission will reduce the campaigning period as in the previous general election in 2004 when it was two weeks only, which was a short time ... may be this time the period will be eight days only.” Commenting on a statement by former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad that he was not influenced by any quarters in choosing Tun Ahmad Fairuz Sheikh Abdul Halim to fill up the top post in the Judiciary, Lim said it was merely an excuse for the former premier to evade the question from members of the media. Although Malaysia is a democratic country and the Prime Minister is vested with the prerogative powers, it does not mean that the Prime Minister is not responsible and accountable to the people, he said. “It is demeaning the public inquiry set up by the Government to investigate the controversial ‘Lingam’ video clip,” he said. Lim said the controversy over the video clip was a serious issue and if the former Prime Minister does not view the matter seriously, then the public will lose confidence in the public inquiry and also to the judiciary.