I was profiled in The Star’s Eurofile section (by Choi Tuck Wo) last week.
See it here
May 7, 2007 • 9:41 pm 0
In The Star (Eurofile)
May 4, 2007 • 9:40 pm 2
Limbury elections
I am still recovering from the long day yesterday. 3 May 2007 for me started at 9am the day before and did not finish until 5am the next day.
Wednesday 2 May – Cllr Edmond Yeo helped us campaign. We spent the whole day talking to people outside the local shops and distributed leaflets informing people what we plan to do for Limbury.
Thursday 3 May:
4am – after prayer, started the dawn-raid. We blitzed Limbury with literature calling for people to vote. We told them that last time Conservative lost by just 32 votes. We explained that Limbury is a close fight between Labour and Conservatives. If they are not happy with Labour, but voted for a party other than us, then Labour is the one who would be smiling.
7am – Polling stations opened. I was telling from the time it opened until around 4pm, when friends from London came all the way up to help. It was looking very good and people were very supportive. Voters were giving us the thumbs-up as they walk in and out of the polling station. Like us, the Labour tellers were not that confident themselves – we all knew it would be a close call.
6pm – Went to our campaign centre and picked up the list of people who have not voted. Visited each one of them to ask them to come out and vote for us.
10pm – Polling closed. Went back home for a quick dinner and to freshen up before the count.
10.30pm – Arrived at counting centre. Counting has started.
2.30am – We were told that it was too close to call. The election officer wanted a recount because it was too close.
3.30am – The result was officially announced as follows:
Malcolm Bailey (Green) 124
Colin David Brown (UK Independence) 214
Norris Bullock (Labour) 859*
Nick Capp (The English Democrats) 263
Klazina Coleman (Labour) 816
John Stephen Roberts (Liberal Democrats) 176
Margaret Simons (Conservative) 844 *
Sharon Elaine Virgo (Liberal Democrats) 143
Wan Saiful Wan Jan (Conservative) 687
Stephen David Wildman (UK Independence) 138
I got 687 votes, which was not enough to get me in. Margaret Simons, my running mate came a close second and was duly elected.
We fought hard. Our campaign got Labour very worried such that they had to call in Kelvin Hopkins MP to help in Limbury. That was how worried they were.
I am elated with Margaret’s victory and I am proud to be part of it. Obviously I am disappointed for losing, but for a first-timer with no previous campaigning experience like me, the outcome was excellent! We gave Labour a good run for their money and were the only ward in the whole of Luton where Conservative gained a seat.
I have three observations:
First, the turnout this time was almost 10% higher than in the last election. It was still low at 39.6%, but relatively better than last time at only 30.44%. The number of votes gained by both Labour and Conservative reflected this. My votes were about 17% higher than what was achieved by the Conservative candidate last time. Margaret’s was 31% higher. In terms of the total number of votes, between Margaret and I, we increased Conservative’s votes by around 25%. This is a big achievement in itself. Unfortunately, and perhaps partly as a result of our own campaign too, Labour’s votes also increased by around 19%.
I think this is due to the fact that Labour campaigned hard to get their voters out. Although we tried our best, we were simply outnumbered. Because they were worried, they called in big names like Kelvin Hopkins MP to help campaign (I saw him in Limbury more several times over the last few months). There were just a few of us working there.
Second, there was clearly some preferential voting taking place. During the count, we did well when the votes for both Margaret and I were counted. But when counting the split votes (ie: those who voted for either one of us plus another party), my votes dropped while Margaret’s went up. Several people at the count, from different parties, commented that this is a sign that the Conservative voters have not changed – they would vote for a white candidate but not for someone with a foreign name. They say that was why they voted for Margaret but not for me. I disagree with that observation.
A good chunk of voters voted for both of us. Race did not come into play for the vast majority of Conservative voters. But in terms of the split votes, I put it more to the fact that Margaret is better known in the community. She received just 157 votes more than I did. She had more time to meet the electorates because she lives and works locally, whereas I was limited to campaigning just during weekends (as I work in London). Local elections are about local issues and people voted for those who they know better. They voted for the Labour candidate and Margaret, both of whom a better known to the locals (the second Labour candidate lives outside the ward and she too lost).
Third, there were simply too many candidates who had no chance of winning but stole votes from us. Labour must be thankful to LibDem, UKIP, the English Democrat and Green. Without them, Labour would have lost. Each vote for these parties was a vote to keep Labour in.
Anyway…. back to normal life. Of course, now I have more time for this.
April 24, 2007 • 10:43 pm 0
Election 4
April 10, 2007 • 12:58 pm 0
Elections 3
April 7, 2007 • 2:09 pm 0
Elections 2
Becoming a local politician is a big responsibility.Don;t do it unless you are committed. Local politics do not bring with it the ‘fame’ associated with becoming a national politician. Local politicians are usually people who really want to do something for their local community. In Luton, the pay is ridiculously low. The Council Leader is paid much less than what I can earn from other sources. A councillor without a cabinet post gets even less.
To make sure prospective councillors know what they are getting themselves into, the Council holds two briefing sessions. I attended one on Thursday 22 March. People from the Council’s Local Democray team were there, as well as the Head of Legal Services. They gave a no-nonsense ‘expose’ on what it would be like to be a councillor, which I found very useful.
The main message was, if you cannot fulfil the responsibility, then don’t do it. People vote for you because they want you to serve them. They don’t vote for you to enable you topursue your personal career ambitions. They want you to deliver.
Another message was, you cannot change the world so do not make empty promises. This is something that resonates well with me. As a team, we conciously decided to not make promises. We are very realistic. As candidates, there is not much we can do. But, if elected, we will do our best to address the concerns people have raised. Of course there will things that we cannot do. Many things will be beyond our sphere of influence. We are always clear on that, and we are not afraid to say “I am so sorry but even if you vote for me, we cannot do XYZ”. However, we are also clear that we WILL do better than the current Labour councillors. We have been working hard to help people in the area since last year and we will continue to do so.
While listening to the presentations, I wondered whether similar briefings happen in Malaysia. The Council staff here do not show political bias. Can civil servants in Malaysia be the same?
We canvass almost every weekend since mid-last year. I just got back from canvassing today. I think this is the most interesting bit in our campaign. Canvassing allows me to meet the electorates in my area. I get the chance to find out what their concerns are, and tell people what I believe in. On the main people are very receptive. Many feel disillusioned by politics, and mainly that is because of Labour. Labour promised the world but have not delivered. The repercussion of Labour failures is people saying they have had enough of politics and will not vote.
April 3, 2007 • 12:11 am 4
Elections
I completed my nomination form on Saturday and it should have been submitted earlier today. I needed ten people to nominate, second, and assent to my nomination. Got all that, and, hopefully all is good with the form and it will go through without problems. I am also beginning to keep tab on my election expenses as we all have to do so since last week.
The elections will be on 3 May. From now till then, it will be a very busy period. People in the local Conservative Association are very, very helpful. The teamwork is simply amazing. My agent in particular is working extremely hard.
Those of you who want to know more about the party, the best way is by following the instructions here.
Less waste. Real improvements.
Vote Conservatives!
February 20, 2007 • 5:11 pm 4
Want to work in an election?
Want experience working in a British election?
On 3 May 2007, there will be local government elections in England, local government and Scottish Parliamentary elections in Scotland, and National Assembly elections in Wales.
This is an opportunity for those who live in the United Kingdom who would like to gain experience working on a British election. Usually, there are opportunities to apply to be poll clerks and / or counting clerks.
The positions are usually paid.
If you are interested, contact the democracy department of your local council who can send you an application form. You can find their contact details on your local council’s website. The recruitment process is usually straight forward and no interviews necessary.
Don’t worry… you don’t have to join any political party to apply. So, you can rest assured you are not committing a sin. Unless, of course, after kuliyah Subuh last Saturday you consider it as taking part in jahiliyah. In such case, please refer to your ‘scholars’ for a fatwa as you are not allowed to think for yourself.
February 3, 2007 • 11:31 pm 4
A bit of local news…
Good coverage on our NHS campaign in December 06. The printed newspaper provided a slightly longer report.
November 4, 2006 • 10:28 pm 1
It is their choice!
On 15 october 2006, David Davis wrote an article in the Daily Telegraph. The title of his article was “Do Muslims really want apartheid here?”. You can read the article here.
David Davis’ writing alarms me. Whatever happened to the Tory party that defends personal choice?
We should be supporting anyone who exercises personal choice. If a woman chooses to wear bikinis or veils, if Jews choose to wear skullcaps or hats, if a Sikh wants to wear turban, if a Christian wants to wear a cross, we should defend them as they are making conscious personal choice.
Mr Davis spoke of the need for integration and daily contacts. The teaching assistant in Leicester and the British Airways staff, despite donning religious symbols as part of their clothing, are both well integrated, or, at least, are integrating. Their jobs ensure the “daily contacts” Mr Davis so demands. Mr Davis’ argument about religious symbolism “creating apartheid” is weak at best, and xenophobic at worst.
In the printed newspaper, above David Davis’ article was this cartoon:
Is it not ironic that Mr Davis’ article was printed right underneath a cartoon satirizing “big government”?
Big government is not merely about legislations. Government becomes “big” when politicians interfere with what is private and personal to the citizens. Whatever next? A politically correct dress code for all citizens walking in public area in order to avoid offending others?
Daily Telegraph printed part of my comments here.
Filed under: Britain, Freedom & Liberty, Misc
July 30, 2006 • 12:38 pm 0
The Blair B’stard Project
The New Statesman is viciously politically incorrect, but that is why it is outrageously good.
Alan B’stard is the puppet master who controls Tony Blair the Prime Minister. Based at 9 Downing Street, he runs the country (and the world via Condy). Condoleezza Rice drops in every now and then, discussing how to solve world problems (while B’stard dreams of her fulfilling his sexual fantasies).
No member of the British establishment was saved from being satirised.
Cherie Blair was cruelly portrayed as a dog that tried to copulate with B’stard’s leg. The Queen, John Prescott, Alistair Darling, Gordon Brown, Alistair Campbell, Mandelson…everybody was in it one way or another.
Rik Mayall did a great job. And The New Statesman is perhaps one of the most vicious political satire recently produced.
If you are not one of those people who cringe at political incorrectness, you should go and see this play.
Recent Comments