LABUAN: The Barisan Nasional (BN) candidate for Labuan, Datuk Bashir Alias, hopes the 15th General Election (GE15) campaigning will be carried out in a “civilised” manner without personal attacks and slander.
He said Labuan only has one parliamentary seat, and personal attacks and slander during the campaign period only serves to disrupt the unity among the various races on the island, which is a tax haven.
“Let us campaign in an orderly manner and not chose to launch personal attacks and slander,” he said.
“For me, the people of Labuan are mature enough to judge all this, which only aims to bring down someone’s good name,” he told reporters after he returned from receiving his GE15 candidate letter.
Bashir is expected to face Datuk Rozman Isli (Parti Warisan) and other candidates from Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu), Parti Bumiputera Malaysia (Putra) and Pakatan Harapan (PH).
Meanwhile, Bashir, who is Umno division chief as well as Labuan BN chairman, said young voters aged 18 and above can be decisive factors for the victory of any candidate in GE15.
“From the electoral roll, we see an increase in the number of voters, exceeding 50 per cent. And if the percentage of young voters is high, it will certainly be decisive for the victory of certain candidates,” he said.
This time, the Labuan BN manifesto is in line with the BN central manifesto, giving focus on economic development and the people’s welfare.
Bashir also said the BN machinery has been preparing for GE15 since BN fell in the GE14.
“All the BN machinery, especially from Umno, have gone down to the field with the people to deal with their various problems,” he added.
Labuan now has 44,484 voters compared to 28,356 in GE14.
Meanwhile, Labuan police have set a date and time (3pm on Nov 5) for all candidates contesting in the GE15 to obtain their election permits.
Labuan Police Chief Supt Ahmad Jawila said a briefing will be held at the district police station meeting room for all candidates.
“All candidates or their representatives must bring along their election campaign plans or relevant documents for the purpose of issuing permits under Section 24 B of the Election Act 1954 (Act 5).
“This is to avoid a clash of the venue during election campaigns among candidates,” he said at a press conference after inspecting the Labuan GE15 nomination centre at SK Sungai Lada.
Ahmad said a total of 326 police officers and personnel would be deployed in various localities throughout the election period from Nov 5-19.
He reminded supporters and candidates from political parties to avoid provocation during the campaign period.
“Especially during the nomination day, all supporters must remain calm and avoid confrontation and provocation. We have already allocated places for supporters of each candidate to assemble and the area is 50 metres from the nomination centre,” he said.
He also said the Jalan Bukit Besar road heading towards the nomination centre at SK Sungai Lada would be closed from 6am to noon, and members of the public could use the Jalan Bukit Timbalai to reach other nearby areas.
