PH digs hole for itself with 6 candidates disqualified

GEORGE TOWN: Pakatan Harapan (PH) has dug a hole for itself following the fiasco of having six candidates disqualified from contesting on grounds of court fines and bankruptcies.
Already ranked as the underdog by many analysts and think tanks, the Opposition pact of PKR, DAP, Parti Amanah Nasional (Amanah) and Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (PPBM) had left themselves with a higher mountain to climb.
PKR's Tian Chua found himself out of the Batu parliamentary seat after he was deemed as ineligible by the Election Commission (EC) due to a fine of RM2,000 by the High Court.
Chua was the Chinese face of the national justice party and a vice-president of the party that he had led in various street rallies in the 1990s.
In the Rantau state seat in Negri Sembilan, the PKR candidate Dr Streram Sinnasamy encountered difficulties entering the nomination centre due to the absence of valid credentials.
His struggle to make his way in to file his papers was captured on smartphones and the video clip had gone viral.
Political analyst Dr Wong Chin Huat said the manner in which how some of the PH candidates were disqualified had led to widespread disgust among voters.
Wong said it was a disappointing start for the Opposition with the walkovers. Some of the candidates were ill-prepared and were clearly to blame, he added.

However, the public would be angered by what was perceived as the EC being unprofessional, he said.
This could translate to voters feeling more compelled to come out and vote and make their voices heard, he said.
Wong had predicted that a higher turnout of more than 80% could tilt the balance in PH's favour to win the 14th General Election (GE14).
To win federal power, PH will need to win at least 112 of the 222 parliamentary seats for a simple majority win.
Wong said he remained optimistic about a PH win and he said a high turnout – perhaps in record numbers — was needed.
The question is whether an 85% turnout as in the last election of 2013 would be adequate for PH in GE14?
To achieve it is a herculean task with limiting funding and logistics nightmare, especially with major roads in the peninsular likely to be clogged with vehicles.
There is also the growing number of diaspora votes. DAP strategist and Air Hitam parliament candidate Liew Chin Tong estimated that there were up to 500,000 voters in Singapore.