First of its kind not only in Tawau but in Sabah and Malaysia as well – a breakfast ceramah at 7.30 am.
Turnout at Sin Onn Market, Tawau by Tawau voters and their families for the breakfast ceramah was over-capacity and overwhelmingly supportive and most encouraging – highlighting the reality that the battle in the Sri Tanjong state Assembly contest is between the DAP candidate Jimmy Wong Sze Phin and the Barisan Nasional candidate while the Tawau parliamentary contest is between the DAP candidate Chan Foong Hin and the BN candidate, although there is a third candidate in both constituencies.
If not for the third candidate in Sri Tanjong, Datuk Kong Hong Ming (Keadilan), many Tawau voters would say that “Tiger” Jimmy Wong would have an edge over the BN candidate, a DAP “renegade”, especially as Jimmy Wong had done more than the incumbent BN candidate to fight for the rights and welfare of the people of Tawau – especially in his successful espousal of the cause of the people of Tawau to defend their “open spaces” from despoilation by an irresponsible axis of the local government and developer, an issue which affects not only Tawau and Sabah but the whole of Malaysia!
In the circumstances, Datuk Kong cannot win on his own but can only draw votes away from Jimmy to ensure that the BN candidate is the sole beneficiary by slipping into victory with a minority vote, which goes against the larger state and national objectives to ensure the defeat of every BN candidate, whether at state or parliamentary level on March 8, 2008.
In the interests of the larger state and national objectives to ensure that March 8 general election delivers a major blow to Umno political hegemony, whether at national or state level, Datuk Liew should seriously consider withdrawing from the Sri Tanjong contest – or the voters should ensure that every vote is husbanded to defeat the BN candidate by voting singlemindedly for Jimmy Wong and not wast away their votes and fundamental constitutional rights through split votes which is the greatest hope and wish of the BN candidate!