FREE DAY 7 What's happening in the by-election campaigns in the state constituencies of Kerdau and Merlimau? Quotable quotes, planned events and unplanned incidents as they take place.

 

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8.15am Kerdau: Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Jamil Khir Baharom to host a meet-and-greet session and present new facilities for the Al-Syakirin mosque in Rumpun Makmur, Gunung Senyum.

8.30am Merlimau: Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob visits the market in Merlimau town.

9am   Merlimau: It's quiet in town today as both BN and PAS candidates will only hit the campaign trail after Friday prayers.

9am Merlimau: Chief Minister Mohd Ali Rustam launches the Merlimau-Jasin-Malacca town Mara bus route at Merlimau polytechnic.

9.50am Kerdau: Housing and Local Government Minister Chor Chee Heung will present a volunteer fire brigade vehicle to residents of Kerdau town.

10am Kerdau: Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Jamil Khir Baharom will present surau facilities and contributions to Orang Asli disabled at a meet-and-greet session with the Orang Asli community at Kg Paya Sendayan.

11am Merlimau: Tourism Minister Ng Yen Yen to attend the '1Malaysia Green, 1Malaysia Clean' programme.

11am Merlimau: Mohd Ali hands over aid to single mothers and poor students at Dewan Haji Ahmad Ithnin.

11am Kerdau: Rural and Regional Development Minister Shafie Apdal attends a meet-the-people session at the Rumpun Makmur cooperative shop.

11.30am Kerdau: Shafie says PKR de-facto chief Anwar Ibrahim should not lash out at Ummi Hafilda Ali for speaking against the former deputy premier.

"When he lies, its okay, but when Ummi Hafilda speaks, he lashes out... the truth, even if it is bitter, must be accepted," he says during the meet-the-people session.

Shafie, who is also an Umno vice-president, was commenting on last night's double ceramah in Rumpun Makmur, where Anwar and Ummi Hafilda faced-off in a simultaneous ceramah across the road from each other (right) .

12pm Merlimau: Energy, Green Technology and Water Minister Peter Chin Fah Kui and Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Koh Tsu Koon to meet with the Chinese community.

12.30pm Kerdau: Visiting Rumpun Makmur for a meet-the-people session, Shafie Apdal announces a RM4.2 million water pipe project to connect 141 houses in five villages in the constituency.

12.30pm Merlimau: PKR youth chief Shamsul Iskandar Md Akin lodges two reports at Merlimau police station against alleged thuggery and yet another batch of 'racist' leaflets bearing the Perkasa Malacca logo. 

Shamsul's second report was on alleged 'attacks' against a vehicle that transported PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim in Permatang Serai on March 2. He said blunt objects were thrown at the car and two other cars escorting Anwar.

12.30pm Merlimau: Pakatan lodges police report against another allegedly racist Perkasa flyer and more incidents of thuggery.

1pm Kerdau: Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin performs Friday prayers at the Kg Badok mosque, after which he will attend a meet-and-greet session with residents of Kg Badok.

3pm Kerdau: Rural and Regional Development Minister Shafie Apdal to meet with village and JKKK heads at the Risda Smallholders Institute in Kg Awah, Temerloh.

3.30pm Merlimau: PAS gives its daily press conference.

3.30pm Merlimau: BN candidate Roslan Ahmad meets fishermen at the Merlimau jetty.

3.30pm Kerdau: Muhyiddin Yassin attends a meet-and-greet session with residents of Rumpun Makmur at their public field. He will then perform Asar prayers at the Kg Ketam mosque, followed by another meet-and-greet session with Kg Ketam residents.

6.00pm Kerdau: Pahang police chief Sharifuddin Abd Ghani denies the alleged attack on Anwar’s vehicle last night, that PKR had reported took place after the leader’s talk at Rumpun Makmur and en route to Jengka 22.

“We were there last night...there was no disturbance,” Sharifuddin told the media at a press conference today. 

7.00pm Merlimau : The media centre comes alive with news that a python was found at an event attended by the chief minister. The snake was pulled out from the bushes by its tail and taken away.

7.30pm Merlimau: The evening sees both 1Malaysia NGO and DAP competing with each other to grab the Chinese crowd in Merlimau, where both functions are held at SRJK(C) Merlimau and on vacant land beside the school.

The 1Malaysia dinner, which is said to have originally planned to organise a 4,000-person dinner, has been reduced to 150 tables. The venue is filling fast, with buses coming in from all over Merlimau.

This is the third dinner 1Malaysia held after nomination day, which is aimed at local Chinese and Indian voters.

As for the DAP function, the response has been so overwhelming that the tickets have been sold out, forcing DAP to increase another 10 tables. Each ticket is sold at RM30.

8.00pm Merlimau: Selangor DAP’s Teng Chang Khim delivers his speech, in Hokkien dialect, jeering that 1Malaysia is so shallow that they need to use entertaintment to attract styrong crowd. The crowd responded to him with laughter and and applaud.

8.25pm Merlimau: Penang CM Lim Guan Eng arrives, the crowd stand up to greet him with applause.

8.30pm Merlimau: DAP Ipoh Barat assemblyperson M Kulasegaran speaks at an event in Taman Muhibbah.

9.20pm Merlimau: At the DAP dinner, when Lim Guan Eng begins his speech, the crowd who attended the 1Malaysia dinner appear at the school gate to listen to Lim.

9.33pm Merlimau: Seats are empty at several ceramah venues for BN and PAS, despite it being a Friday night. The most any of the two PAS venues and three BN venues visited by Malaysiakini have is about 50 people.

9.45pm Merlimau: Still at the DAP dinner, Lim Guan Eng says Merlimau’s real candidate is Malacca CM Mohd Ali Rustam.

“ BN makan duit dari Melaka sampai Putrajaya ,” he said, adding that only Pakatan dares to ‘capture’ this 'two-legged crocodile'.

10.00pm Merlimau: Still at the DAP dinner, a minor scuffle happens between 1Malaysia dinner staff and a pressure group, when the latter tries to give balloons to the crowd who are attending the 1Malaysia dinner.

1Malaysia staff burst all the balloons, and the move causes a stir from DAP supporters and they began to shout at each other.

The group, from Sg Long, Selangor, gave away balloons as a reminder that BN has yet to build a chinese school as promised.

10.20pm

Merlimau: Still at the DAP dinner, Lim Guan Eng leaves the venue for his next ceramah at Merlimau Pasir.

10.25pm Kerdau: Perkasa chief Ibrahim Ali begins his ceramah in the BN camp at the double ceramah venue at Rumpun Makmur.

After greeting the crowd, he tells them that he came to speak as he thought PKR de facto chief Anwar Ibrahim was speaking tonight.

“But it looks like he changed his mind and gave his ceramah the night before. It looks like he’s running away from Ibrahim Ali,” he said to cheers from the BN crowd.

The ceramah-goers at the BN camp swelled slightly to around 200 people to listen to Ibrahim, after a rather slow turnout of about half that number earlier.

10.30pm

Merlimau: At the DAP dinner, Bukit Gantang MP Nizar Jamaluddin describes the prime minister as the ‘Pirate of the Carribbean’, for stealing Perak.

10.34pm Kerdau: Ibrahim tells the crowd of his recent heart operation, which left him bedridden for three days.

“The doctor later told me I am okay, and I can carry on doing what I do... I will continue to live so long as PAS is around to cause trouble,” he said.

10.34pm Merlimau: The crowd at the BN venue in Merlimau Pasir hear Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Ahmad Maslan say that BN has already won 4-0, as its candidate, the coalition, the states the coalition govern and its leaders are better than that of Pakatan Rakyat’s.

He also took potshots at Yuhaizad, who votes in Bemban despite being born and bred in Chinchin, a village in Merlimau, saying that the fact that he is not a constituent shows he is not serious.

The crowd has grown to 100 people, as Defence Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi arrives.

10.40pm Kerdau: Ibrahim taunts the PAS crowd across the road at the double ceramah venue in Rumpun Makmur, saying none of the PAS leaders know anything of their opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim.

“Before he was kicked out (of the government), Anwar always praised (former premier) Dr Mahathir (Mohamad), saying ‘There is no statesman greater than Anwar’.

“What does (PAS president Abdul) Hadi (Awang) know? What does (PAS deputy president) Nasharudin (Mat Isa) know?,” he said, earning jeers from PAS supporters.

10.57pm Merlimau: Ahmad Zahid says that he is willing to die to defend Najib.

“If you want to take down Najib, its over my dead body. We will defend him. The blood that flows in his veins is (second premier) Abdul Razak (Hussein)’s blood, the blood of a warrior who has defended Umno, BN and the rakyat,” he said.

He said that Turkish president Tayyip Erdogan, in Najib’s recent trip to Turkey, referred to the PM as his “brother” and that the Turkish press did not ask a single question about Anwar.

11.10pm Kerdau: The BN camp takes a break from the drone of ceramahs at Rumpun Makmur, bringing on M Daud Kilau, a popular 60s icon, to perform a few of his hits from the era.

M Daud’s appearance caused a stir among the ceramah-goers at the BN camp, with some youths seen dancing on their motorcycles while waving the BN flag.

11.24pm

Merlimau: 500 metres from the BN venue at Merlimau Pasir, popular PAS leader Mohamad Sabu attracts a crowd of about 600. Many are squatting or standing to hear him speak, while others are sitting on newspapers on the dirt in the dark as only the stage is lit.

This is unlike those at the BN camp who sit on plastic chairs and are provided with free mineral water under a well-lit tent.

Day 6: BN-Pakatan night events side by side

Day 5: 'You want the Anti-Christ Anwar, Jews to take over?'

Day 4: Anwar sings Tiru Macam Saya to 'someone'

Day 3: BN woos teachers with RM18.4 million bounty

Day 2: Najib blitzes Kerdau Felda areas