graveyard of politics

Actually By election can determine the outcome of A general election.
As example before the a election,if a certain party or coalition wins with a big majority or boost huge popularity then the General nationwide election can be easily determined the outcome which is now in the current senario i think BN will lose or win by a even slighter margin then now which isn't 2/3 of the seats in parliment.
The new prime minister DS Najib said Barisan Nasional might not contest the Penanti state by-election if it obtains the consensus of all component parties.It's because they already know it's a fallen cause and just waste of money.To further elaborate issues he will discuss with other BN component members on the best possible way of tackling this issue as in hope it will not get politicized but i am sure it will and this will only just exploits the government weaknesses

"I will raise the matter at the next Umno Supreme Council meeting. If I don't have the time, I will bring it up to the Political Bureau, and discuss with the Barisan component party presidents," he said.

Najib said he did not rule out the possibility of Barisan not contesting as the latest by-election in Penang was clearly a "political ploy" by the Opposition.

"No, we are not afraid of losing to them but it is a sheer waste of public funds.

"Whatever decision we make, we will take into consideration whether it benefits the people," he told reporters at a press conference at his residence near here on Saturday.

but in a direct attack to this issue Tun mahathir said that BN should not be scared to contest Penanti as this is what the goverment is for which is to try and show the rakyat that government is always willing to take care of a opposition state.
So he has urged Barisan Nasional (BN) to drop the idea of not contesting the Penanti by-election in Penang.
To do so, he said, would be to concede defeat to the opposition Pakatan Rakyat (PR).

The former PM does not seem to be on the same page as Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak who floated the idea yesterday of not contesting the polls.

“If it was in an Umno area, I am sure that we will contest. However, since it is in an Opposition area, we do not want to contest.

“But if we wait to contest only in Umno areas, then there would not be any Umno’s areas and we would not have to contest anywhere,” he said in Raub, Pahang today.

Najib had argued that contesting elections he claimed were unnecessary was a waste of public funds.

His idea appeared to have gained traction with many BN leaders voicing their support and accusing Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim of using elections for political purposes.

Since last year’s landmark general elections, BN has lost four out of five by-elections held so far to Pakatan Rakyat (PR).

The latest defeats, in Bukit Gantang and Bukit Selambau, were particularly galling for BN as it came soon after Najib took over as PM from Tun Abdullah Badawi, the man who has been singled out for blame for the coalition’s poor performances.

Today, Election Commission (EC) chairman Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Yusof was quoted by Sin Chew Daily as saying he was seeking a meeting with both BN and PR to urge them not to contest the polls.

The EC chairman echoed Najib’s call, but he did not cite any legal or constitutional provisions which would allow the vote to be called off.

but i think that PR will win this seat as this is the backbone of Anwar's parliment so BN will not contest

Dr Mahathir’s latest remarks will be the latest test for Najib’s fledgling leadership of BN as the PM will want to assert his leadership.

The Penanti state seat has fallen vacant due to the resignation of Fairus Khairuddin, who also resigned recently as the state’s deputy chief minister amid graft allegations.

Penanti is a state seat which falls within Anwar’s Permatang Pauh parliamentary constituency.

Yesterday, Anwar also welcomed Najib’s suggestion, saying he was happy if BN did not contest the vote.

Dr Mahathir said that when he was prime minister, Umno never withdrew from any election, including in Kelantan, a PAS stronghold.

“Winning or losing is a separate matter but if we do not contest then the other party has already won,” he said.

“History has proven that Umno can face giant powers, including the British in our struggle for independence.

“The fighting spirit of those days should be a lesson to present and future generations.”