Prediction of BN landslide won’t affect outcome, says DAP’s Sim

SEGAMAT: A prediction of a landslide victory for Barisan Nasional in Johor is merely an assumption and has no bearing on the outcome at the ballot box, says DAP deputy secretary-general Steven Sim.

Sim said election seasons are defined by political predictions from various parties, but the final result lies in the hands of the electorate.

“Some predictions come from intellectuals, others come from experts, and some come from Pak Belalang,” he said, referring to the classic Malay folk character who pretended to be a fortuneteller.

DAP would focus on working hard on the ground, “no matter what predictions people make”, he said after attending a meet-and-greet with entrepreneurs in Jementah as entrepreneur development and cooperatives minister. DAP’s Ng Kor Sim is the Pakatan Harapan candidate for the Jementah state seat.

Sim’s comments were in response to a prediction by Ong Kian Ming, a former DAP central leadership member and former Bangi MP, who said that BN could end up sweeping 53 of the 56 seats available on July 11, or 13 more than the 40 it won in 2022. He said PH would likely take the remaining three seats while Perikatan Nasional could be wiped out.

Sim said DAP’s confidence in victory was based not on predictions, but on the continuous efforts of its leaders and party machinery to win over voters. “We’ll only take such predictions as a point of reference, no matter where they come from. What is important is that we continue to strive,” he said.