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KUALA LUMPUR - MALAYSIA'S ruling coalition has started dishing out millions of ringgit to schools and organisations in Penang in what clearly appears to be an effort to woo voters in the state ahead of the general election.
Top guns from the Barisan Nasional (BN) have also appeared in Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi's home state - Malaysia's only Chinese-majority state - which the opposition is eyeing, eager to exploit discontent among the community.
The government on Friday presented RM3.8 million (S$1.7 million) to 15 Mandarin-medium primary schools, and gave eight Indian non-governmental organisations RM10,000 each.
The handouts came on top of a RM80 million nationwide package targeting the disabled and needy, also announced by the Premier on Friday.
The goodies were personally given out by ministers and top guns, who showed up at various functions in Penang to touch base with voters.
They included Datuk Seri Abdullah, Malaysian Chinese Association president Ong Ka Ting and his Gerakan counterpart Koh Tsu Koon.
The show of force, along with the handouts usually given in the run-up to a general election, is a clear indication that the state of Penang will be the main battleground when the Prime Minister calls for an election.
About 43 per cent of Penang's population is Chinese - 2 per cent more than Malays. Indians make up 10 per cent.
Chinese education is an issue traditionally close to the community, whose support for the Abdullah administration is said to be waning.
The unhappiness comes from inflation, rising crime rates and a raft of racial-religious issues, such as the recent tussle over the body of a dead man from Seremban whose conversion to Islam was disputed.
The opposition, including the Chinese-based Democratic Action Party, has made known its intention to harvest such discontent in the state.
'Giving money to Chinese schools is obviously an attempt to win the hearts and minds of Penang residents in the run-up to the polls,' Penang DAP's political secretary to party secretary general Ng Wei Aik told The Sunday Times yesterday.
As part of plans to deny the ruling coalition the two-thirds majority in the 40-seat state legislature, the DAP plans to step up efforts to show that the BN has not done enough for the Chinese community, said Mr Ng.
'For example, there are still not enough Chinese schools in Penang as no new ones were built in the past few years,' he said.
Last month, the DAP reached a crucial compromise with opposition Parti Keadilan Rakyat to ensure no overlapping contests in the state, giving both parties a better chance in the polls.
kumhor@sph.com.sg
Additional information from The Star/Asia News Network
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