Living up to expectations, Umno's 'Save Selangor' campaign, the culmination of months of fussing over how to reclaim the lucrative state that it lost to Pakatan Rakyat in the last general election, started with a predictable platter of name-calling and insults at the current PR government.

NONE Jostling for his turn at the mudslinging was former PKR youth chief turned Umno member Ezam Mohd Nor ( right ), who launched relentless attacks against his former boss, PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim.

Independent news portal Malaysiakini was not spared Ezam’s eloquence as he continued his tirade against the website over its report on the plight of the migrant workers at the new palace construction site.

"What is their agenda? I have visited the palace site to defend it, not to defend the contractors who didn't pay the workers. But why are they harping on it?

"Why are they calling it ‘palace of tears’?" he fumed at the ceremah.

Ezam capped his breast-beating with claims of "evidence" that he gave to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong last night, as well as to the Home Ministry two days ago.

" Malaysiakini is Anwar's keparat (bastard). They are working for Anwar," he roared as the crowd of 200 at a parking lot in Shah Alam Section 17 last night broke into loud applause.

Sticks and stones

The function was the first of a 19-stop ceremahs circuit in the ‘first phase’ of the Umno offensive.

Calling it a ‘wave’ to ‘save Selangor’, Umno has never been more hellbent on recapturing the richest state in the country.

To do that, it appears that personal attacks was the order of the evening, with each taking turns at name-calling.

NONE "MB Khalid Ibrahim is stupid. He is not a politician. Could not even get his own party correct," said Satim Diman, the Sri Serdang lawmaker, referring to Khalid’s gaffe when in the 2007 Ijok by-election he mistakenly asked supporters to vote for the BN.

Kuang assemblymen Shukur Idris ( left ), meantime, amused the predominantly Malay crowd with jibes at the MB, imitating Khalid's unmistakable stutter.

From namecalling, the speakers descended further into rubbishing the Pakatan government's work since capturing the state in March 2008.

Armed with disputable data, the rally led by Selangor Umno deputy chief Noh Omar tore at the state government's policies one by one.

Pot calling kettle?

The sand theft issue, over which Umno had carefully whipped up a storm over the past weeks, made a predictable appearance.

Many also trained their guns on PR's previous election manifesto, telling the crowd that the coalition had failed to deliver.

"They say that they wanted to build homes for the poor, and the young married couples. Until now, I've yet to see one pillar," said Shah Alam Umno chief Ahmad Nawawi M Zin.

The deluge of potshots included disingenuous allegations that corruption and cronyism is rampant in the current state government, failing to acknowledge that similar shortcomings and allegations had been leveled at their own previous administration of the state.