KUALA LUMPUR – With multi-cornered fights in almost every seat, most voters who will cast their ballots in the 15th general election (GE15) this Saturday remain coy over which coalition’s candidate will get their support, but are clear on the kind of leaders they want.
In Hulu Langat, which will see a six-cornered fight, trader Zainuddin Muslim was upfront in stating he would vote for the Perikatan Nasional (PN) candidate because of its chairman Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.
“God-willing, I will choose Abah because I remember his services during the Covid-19 pandemic,” Zainuddin told Getaran, The Vibes’ sister news portal.
He was using the nickname given to Muhyiddin by supporters when he was prime minister for 17 months after ousting the elected Pakatan Harapan (PH) government in 2020.
“Those in need received help from his government, even if it was not much,” the Hulu Langat voter said when met at the Beranang morning market here.
Another voter in the seat, Mansor Zakaria, also felt the same way, calling PN a coalition that served all Malaysians regardless of race.
He said he felt confident in PN’s leaders who had prior experience in government. This could be in reference to ministers in Muhyiddin’s Bersatu who had party-hopped from Umno and who held cabinet posts under previous Barisan Nasional (BN) administrations.
Zainuddin and Mansor’s comments reflect a narrative PN has been repeating throughout its GE15 campaign – if voters don’t like BN, and its linchpin Umno, or PH, then PN is a safe alternative.
The coalition that includes Bersatu and PAS has also been pushing Muhyiddin’s record as prime minister during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic to persuade voters of his capable leadership.
In Hulu Langat, PN’s Mohd Radzi Latif is facing candidates from BN, PH, Warisan and Pejuang, as well as one independent.
The seat was won in 2018 by PH through Amanah by a 25,424-vote majority in a contest against BN and PAS.
Meanwhile, another voter, Jayapoovan Pannirselvam, preferred to keep mum on his choice this Saturday but said voters should think carefully when choosing which of the six candidates in Hulu Langat to represent them.
“The candidate (of my choice) must first know what the people’s problems are, and he or she must be able to solve those problems if he or she is to be considered a good leader. Or nothing in this country will change,” said Jayapoovan.
First-time voter Nor Juliana Joned, 20, said she was excited to vote but declined to state which candidate she would support.
“My candidate will be someone whom I think can fight for the people, particularly the future of young people like myself.
“Today’s young people have a lot of needs, including jobs that pay well and basic things like housing.”
Nor Juliana also said she wanted Malaysia “to improve” and its citizens to stop fighting about politics.
Another young voter, Daniel Jebaraj, said candidates need to realize that the youth are the country’s backbone and they need support to reach their full potential.
Besides improvement to the education system, he said youths will also benefit from better sports infrastructure and other measures that can help them achieve their potential.
More than 21 million people are on the electoral roll for GE15, of which more than six million are young and new voters. The three main coalitions in contention are BN, PH and PN, besides a host of smaller parties and independent candidates.
A total of 23 parties or coalitions, comprising 946 candidates, are contesting in GE15 for the country’s 222 parliamentary seats. – The Vibes, November 16, 2022
