Putrajaya takes PM's Raya open house to PAS-held states amid battle for Malay votes

Putrajaya is taking the national-level Hari Raya celebrations attended by the prime minister to Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu, in a likely move to shore up support in the Malay heartlands for the ruling Pakatan Harapan (PH) and its ally Barisan Nasional (BN), which were trashed by PAS and Perikatan Nasional (PN) in the three northern states last year.

The Prime Minister's Department (JPM) also announced that Kedah had been selected as the venue for the main national-level Hari Raya open house, an annual highlight which was paused during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Last year's Hari Raya open house was held in Terengganu, as celebrations resumed following the country's move to the endemic stage. 

In a statement, JPM said it was organising this year's Madani events in cooperation with state governments.

Besides Kelantan and Terengganu, Anwar will also be the guest of honour for events planned in Selangor, Penang and Negeri Sembilan, it said.

The statement added that the respective menteris besar and chief ministers would also be invited to the events.

The announcement came in the wake of denials by Putrajaya that Kedah Menteri Besar Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor had been banned from attending the Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace Exhibition, or Lima 2023, to be held in the holiday island next month.

Kedah is a key Malay-majority state being eyed by PH and BN as both coalitions seek to shore up their Malay support.

In the November general election last year, PAS, which is part of PN, won 13 of the 14 federal seats in Kedah while making major gains in Umno and PKR strongholds in mainland Penang, including Anwar's home town of Permatang Pauh where his eldest daughter Nurul Izzah was also defeated.

PAS also swept all of the parliamentary seats in its traditional power bases of Kelantan and Terengganu.

Analysts are predicting a similar trend of Malay support going to PN at the coming state elections in Selangor, Penang, Negeri Sembilan, Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu.