KUALA LUMPUR – A Pejuang youth leader has insisted that the two-year-old party was conceived to solve the problems of the people and not to compete with other political entities for the prime minister’s seat.
Its Women’s Youth wing head Dr Nurul Ashikin Mabahwi said that her decision to run in the 15th general election (GE15) is not motivated by power and position.
“The difference is that we are not competing for power or to strengthen our position,” said the candidate for the Ampang parliamentary seat.
“Pejuang has not named a candidate for prime minister because we are competing to solve local problems, not to win seats.
“The job of people’s representatives is not to take seats that they feel belong to them,” she said at a rally in Bandar Baru Ampang last night.
Speculations are rife that Pejuang chairman Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, who in the past served as prime minister for an accumulated total of 25 years in two separate stints with different parties, is aiming to assume the premier’s seat again.
However, Dr Mahathir, who is defending the Langkawi parliamentary seat in GE15, recently said that Pejuang’s coalition, Gerakan Tanah Air (GTA), does not have a list of candidates for the post of prime minister.
The 97-year-old said that GTA will only name its choice for the position if it wins the election.
Dr Ashikin also sought to downplay concerns about Pejuang’s capacity to perform because it is relatively smaller than some of the older parties contesting in the polls.
She stressed that all elected legislators, regardless of which party they are from, are given similar allocations.
“Even though we are a small party, don’t worry – because every Parliament member gets the same amount of allocation.”
“Don’t be afraid to choose a small and new party just because you’ve been voting for the same candidate for 15 years,” she said.
The Ampang constituency is seeing a nine-cornered fight in GE15 on Saturday. The other major candidates include Datuk Zuraida Kamaruddin of Parti Bangsa Malaysia (PBM) and Rodziah Ismail of Pakatan Harapan (PH).
Problems in the constituency
Dr Ashikin said that based on the party’s evaluation, a serious problem in Ampang is that the area is prone to flooding when there is too much water, but also at risk of seeing piped water supply getting cut off when there is little water.
“Why is this issue not brought up in Parliament after so many years?” she asked.
She also touched on the need to have proper facilities and to make education accessible to children with special needs.
“The problem in Ukay Perdana is that there are not enough schools for special-needs children,” she said.
“Parents are forced to send their special children away from home. This issue has also not been brought up in Parliament when it is a problem among the people.
She stressed that she and her team had met families having such children, especially single mothers, in Ampang.
She also promised to continue serving the very day after the election in the event she is voted as the MP.
“I promise to serve after being named a representative of the people. There is no off-time for Dr Ashikin,” she assured. – The Vibes, November 16, 2022
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