Return bus-ted by PAS rowdies

By R.S.N. Murali and Paul Choo / The Star Newspaper / 8 Mar 2008
 

KUALA TERENGGANU: Nine buses en route here were halted by more than 300 rowdy PAS supporters in Kuala Ibai.

In the 5am incident yesterday, the buses, carrying a total of 350 passengers, were forced to divert to the Tengku Tengah Zaharah floating mosque.

Acting on a tip-off, police arrived and dispersed the crowd, escorting all nine buses to Wisma Darul Iman here, where family members and friends of the passengers were waiting anxiously.

Police later detained four men in connection with the incident.

It was learnt that the buses, several of which were chartered, were carrying mainly female university students who were returning to the state to cast their votes today.

All passengers were reported to have returned home safely by 7am.

It was highlighted in the media recently that PAS had vowed to use all means necessary to prevent phantom voters from entering Terengganu and Kelantan.

Following yesterday's incident, roadblocks were set up at all entry points into the state, said state police chief Senior Asst Comm (I) Datuk Ayub Yaacob.

"Our priority was the safety of the passengers and thankfully, there were no injuries sustained in the incident.

"The situation was under control although the rowdy supporters hurled abuse at us," he told a press conference.

He said the four men detained, aged between 32 and 37, were nabbed in Jalan Tok Lam here at around 11am yesterday.

A total of 80 officers were deployed in the incident, including Public Order Riot Unit (PORU) officers.

SAC Ayub also confirmed that they had received two reports from two bus drivers on the damage sustained by their vehicles, which included cracked windows as a result of stones being thrown and minor dents.

A passenger involved in the incident, university student Nurul Arifah Nordin, said it was a horrifying experience for her.

"They (PAS supporters) shouted for us to get out from the bus. It was horrifying when they started throwing stones at us," said Nurul.

She said police acted swiftly after the vehicle that she was travelling on was halted.

Another victim, Riduan Abdul Rahim, also a university student, said, "Everyone on the bus was too frightened to get down because the opposition supporters were hurling abuse at us."

In Besut, Terengganu Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Idris Jusoh described the incident as a "blessing in disguise" for Barisan Nasional, as voters were able to attest to the violent behaviour of "these bigots".

He said he was not shocked when he received news of the incident.

"This is what PAS is, it has always been aggressive and it doesn't surprise me.

"They (the passengers) could be fence-sitters travelling back to vote and I am sure their support has swung to Barisan by now," he said.

Meanwhile, PAS state commissioner Datuk Mustafa Ali said the party did not condone violence.

"Any violence is out of the question. We will follow the process of democracy," he told a press conference at PAS headquarters here yesterday.

He, however, declined to comment on the incident, as he claimed he had not heard about it.