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KUALA LUMPUR – Once rumoured to be PKR’s menteri besar candidate, Maszlee Malik has failed to wrest Barisan Nasional (BN) stronghold of Layang-Layang but this did not dull his commitment to serve the people.
Taking to Facebook through a live broadcast last night, Maszlee thanked those who supported him over the course of the campaign and those who voted for him.
“The result today will in no way deflate us but only serve as a catalyst and encouragement to look ahead and continue fighting.
“I accept and adhere to the results with an open heart and in the spirit of competition, and with the decision of the people.
“So, we cannot give up; wipe away those tears, and continue moving forward for the betterment of the country.”
Maszlee lost the Layang-Layang seat to BN’s Abd Mutalip Abd Rahim by more than 2,815 votes. The others contesting were Perikatan Nasional’s Alagenthiran Krishnan and Pejuang’s Ahmad Syafiq Othaman.
The Simpang Renggam MP in the video also highlighted the low voter turnout, empathising with those he said who decided against making the trip back to Johor to vote.
He conceded how having an election in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic was going to be a challenge from the beginning.
Separately, he included how leaders must begin paying attention to voices of the youth if they are to win over their votes in the future.
“I realised that we need to give more attention to the youth, especially those who were going to vote for the first time. Hopefully after this, we will pay more attention to them even if their voting polarity is still unpredictable.
“Hopefully with ongoing awareness and civic-mindedness instilled in them, the youth will come to understand how important their participation is in an election and to vote.” – The Vibes, March 13, 2022
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