Ge15: Malaysian Pm, Wife Fulfill Responsibility As Voters

BERA (Pahang, Malaysia), Nov 19 (Bernama) -- Malaysian Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob cast his vote for the 15th General Election (GE15) at the polling centre at Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan (SMK) Bandar Kerayong, here at 10.27 am. His wife, Muhaini Zainal Abidin, and a few other family members, also cast their votes at the school. The caretaker prime minister, who is also Barisan Nasional (BN) candidate for the Bera parliamentary seat, and his family members, all dressed in blue and white, arrived at the venue at 9.20 am. Meanwhile, met by reporters after casting his vote, Ismail Sabri said he was satisfied with the voting process at the school and advised electors to come early to fulfill their responsibility. "I urge electors to come out early to vote, especially the first-time voters.... perform your responsibility and choose the right government to ensure stability and prosperity in the country," he said. In GE15, Ismail Sabri, who is defending the Bera seat, which he won since 2004, is challenged by Pakatan Harapan (PH) candidate Abas Awang and Asmawi Harun of Perikatan Nasional (PN). In the 2018 general election, Ismail Sabri won the seat with a majority of 2,311 votes, defeating PKR candidate Zakaria Abdul Hamid who obtained 18,449 votes and PAS candidate Musaniff Ab Rahman, who secured 8,096 votes. There are 77,669 registered electors in the Bera parliamentary constituency. On another matter, the caretaker prime minister urged electors in the GE15 to exercise wisdom when discharging their responsibility by electing a stable government to avoid a situation of 'hung parliament', where no party gets a majority to form a government. He said BN is capable of forming a government by getting the simple majority required with its ally parties, namely Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) in Sarawak and Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) in Sabah in GE15. He said any cooperation with other parties in the peninsula in the formation of a government would have to be discussed and decided by the party leadership after the GE15. "Our target is to be able to cross the bridge with more than 112 (parliamentary) seats with the help of BN allies in Sabah and Sarawak to form a government," he said. -- BERNAMA