IPOH – The battle for the Tambun parliamentary seat will be at the centre stage of the 15th general election (GE15) and is likely to set the tempo throughout the campaign period.
Spearheading the charge is Pakatan Harapan’s (PH) chairman and prime minister hopeful Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim whose closest opponent will be Datuk Seri Ahmad Faizal Azumu, Perak’s Perikatan Nasional (PN) chief and former menteri besar.
Contenders from other coalitions, such as Barisan Nasional’s (BN) Datuk Aminuddin Md Hanafiah and the anomalous Gerakan Tanah Air’s (GTA) Abdul Rahim Tahir, will likely be drowned out as the two heavyweights from PH and PN slug it out.
Faizal, who was the youth and sports minister in the last cabinet before Parliament’s dissolution, is the incumbent in this race.
Well-known in the constituency as an “approachable” politician with a “jovial” demeanour, Faizal, however, admitted to being an underdog, as Anwar bears a long political history and larger-than-life persona.
It is understood that one of Anwar’s key campaign strategies for the seat is to make the point to Tambun constituents that he is PH’s prime ministerial choice, something that he subtly did in winning the Port Dickson parliamentary by-election in 2018.
In this light, Anwar stands to lose more if Faizal manages to pull off an upset win, which could prematurely end the opposition leader’s aspiration of finally leading the country. Such an eventuality would also wound PH’s pride in the process.
Being formerly schooled in Umno’s style of campaigning, Faizal is likely to avoid lengthy political rallies or grandiose speeches, to instead focus on door-to-door engagements and modest gatherings at smaller yet critical electoral hubs.
Such means are also often employed by PAS and opted by Bersatu in great effect during the previous general election.
Bersatu has a much more subdued reputation in Perak, where it has earned only one state seat – Chenderiang won by Faizal himself – of the 14 that the party contested in 2018.
Faizal became the menteri besar, only to be booted out of office in December 2020 when he lost a vote of confidence supposedly orchestrated by strange bedfellows Umno and DAP.
While it is expected for PH to bring its top guns to Tambun to help secure the seat for Anwar, the state of Perak has a history of humbling PH as they have been booted out twice from the state administration due to defections.
This happened during the state constitutional crisis in 2009, when Perak was ruled by PH’s precursor Pakatan Rakyat, and again during the “Sheraton Move” in 2020.
It has been PH’s mantra that capturing the state will propel the coalition to helm Putrajaya. They will go broke to meet this objective.
What of the people of Tambun?
While political actors and pundits alike have often touted the importance of any party to win the Tambun seat, the constituents are largely unperturbed over the election, mirroring the calm and quiet way of life of most Perak natives.
Flanked by the city centre of Ipoh and the Kinta forest reserve, which connects directly to the Titiwangsa mountainous range, the constituency benefits greatly from eco-tourism, themed attractions, and small industries.
Despite its humble surroundings, Tambun recorded the highest number of registered voters in the state, with over 160,000 eligible voters compared to only 108,000 in the 2018 general election.
Under Tambun, there are two state seats –the Malay-majority constituencies of Manjoi and Hulu Kinta.
Manjoi also possesses the highest number of eligible voters in a Perak state constituency – 86,000 with 7.39% of them consisting of voters between the ages of 18 and 20.
Based on statistics from the last general election, Tambun consists of 67% Malays, followed by 20% Chinese, 11% Indian and 2% characterised as others.
In the last election, Faizal defeated Datuk Seri Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah of Umno and Muhamad Zulkifli Mohamad Zakaria of PAS by a 5,320-vote majority.
Indian community, the deciding factor
Three out of four coalitions – BN, PN and GTA – are contesting in Tambun with their platforms based on Malay ethnocentrism. Political pundits say this has effectively split the Malay votes.
PH also possesses a considerable voter base among the non-Malays and has always enjoyed a near-monopoly of Chinese votes, based on past election results.
The race is now for all coalitions to woo the Indian community, who have been touted as the kingmaker for the seat.
This was also admitted by Faizal, who looks to rely on his previous track record as menteri besar to secure their votes.
While he has won previously with the help of the Chinese electorate, Faizal acknowledges that this would be a difficult task this time.
His contender Anwar, however, seems to enjoy strong support from the Indian community, judging from his previous election run in Port Dickson, where he had won with a 23,560-vote majority.
It was reported that the Indians of Port Dickson, comprising 22% of voters there, had come out en masse to vote for Anwar then.
The PKR president is looking to repeat this effect and effectively win the seat. – The Vibes, November 5, 2022
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