Free durian fair a thorny issue at by-election

PETALING JAYA: Bersih 2.0 has cried foul over a free durian fair planned during the campaigning period of the Sungai Kandis by-election. A poster of the event said 1,000 durians from Batu Kurau, Perak, will be served to attendants of the fair which will be held within the constituency.
Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) candidate Zawawi Ahmad Mughni and Selangor Mentri Besar Amirudin Shari will also attend the durian feast.
"Bersih 2.0 condemns such corrupt practices, as, if held, is tantamount to an offence under Section 8 of the Election Offences Act for treating to influence voting behaviour of voters," it said in a statement today.
Moreover, according to the poster, the event is being organised by Kohijrah, which is a consolidation of microcredit programme under the mentri besar, it added.
"Bersih 2.0 calls for the event to be cancelled immediately. The mentri besar and the PKR candidate should also provide a public explanation of the event. If this event is not cancelled and such trends continue in the campaign, then MACC should investigate and take action, in line with Sections 3 and 7 of the MACC Act," it added.
If a state agency is going to organise any event that involves election candidates, all contesting candidates should be invited and be treated equally, it said.
Bersih 2.0 reminded the Pakatan Harapan (PH) government that the people have voted for change in the 14th General Election – a change from the BN rule of 61 years that was marred by massive corruption, cronyism and nepotism.
PH should uphold its election manifesto, which promises to cleanse Malaysia of corruption, malfeasance and kleptocracy, Promise 14 on strengthening anti-corruption practices and Promise 17 on ensuring transparency and robustness of our election system, it added.