Hadi Once Again Peddles Disinformation About Malay Vs Non-Muslim Voter Turnout
The PAS president recently repeated his narrative — that is not supported by data — about "low Malay turnout" and warned that one day non-Muslims will dominate the Malays.
By Sadho Ram — 02 Mar 2023, 04:37 PM
PAS president Tan Sri Abdul Hadi Awang is, once again, peddling disinformation about voter turnout for the 15th General Election (GE15)
Speaking at a recent dialogue session held in Kuala Lumpur, the Marang member of parliament (MP) claimed that while his coalition, Perikatan Nasional (PN), succeeded in winning the Malay and Muslim votes, the Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition formed the government by winning the non-Muslim vote.
PN won 74 seats in total, while PH won 82. Days after GE15, PH together with Barisan Nasional (BN), GPS, GRS, Warisan, and others, under a grand coalition, formed a unity government.
However, according to Hadi, this is all because the total voter turnout from the Indian, Chinese, and other races was "worryingly" higher than the total Muslim voter turnout in GE15, reported Utusan Malaysia.
"Non-Muslim turnout was 98% while Muslim turnout was only 68%. This is worrying," he claimed.
This is not the first time that Hadi has peddled disinformation about lower Muslim voter turnout. In December last year, in an open letter to Muslims, he claimed only 60% of Muslims voted in GE15.
At the time, Hadi even warned that those who did not vote might have committed a sin "as they had disobeyed God's command as stated by the Prophet Muhammad", reported New Straits Times.
For the record, the total voter turnout for GE15 was 74.04%
The Election Commission's (EC) official data shows that a total of 21,173,638 Malaysians voted in GE15 compared to 14,940,624 voters in GE14. The 41.72% increase is due to the amendments to the law allowing those aged 18 and above to vote, as well as the implementation of automatic voter registration.
Hadi, however, has consistently peddled his theory that the total Malay voter turnout for GE15 was lower than other ethnic/non-Muslim races
Contrary to Hadi's claim, polling data collected by a University of Nottingham Malaysia political analyst shows that Malays made up the highest percentage of voters compared to other races.
According to Free Malaysia Today, political analyst Bridget Welsh found that the Malay voter turnout in GE15 was 79%, followed by Indian voters at 78%, Chinese voters at 69%, and other races at 59%.
Additionally, while Malay voter turnout was higher than that of other races, not all supported PN, of which PAS is the biggest component member due to the party's 43 parliamentary seats.
"Of the Malays who did vote, only 54% supported PN," Welsh told Free Malaysia Today.
However, Hadi keeps repeating his narrative — that is not supported by data — about "low Malay turnout", and warning about a dangerous time when non-Muslims will dominate the Malays.
This, again, is incorrect.
According to a Malaysiakini review, ethnic Malays make up the most number of MPs at 50, who are supporting the Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim-led government that consists of 148 MPs in total.
The rest include 27 MPs who are East Malaysian Muslim Bumiputera, 16 MPs who are East Malaysian non-Muslim Bumiputera, 42 Chinese MPs, and 12 MPs who are Indians or other races.
Additionally, the Bumiputera make up the largest group of MPs in government.
Anwar Ibrahim (centre) leaves Putra Mosque after prayers in Putrajaya.
Image via The Vibes via Prime Minister's Office