NIBONG TEBAL – Voters in the semi-rural Sg Bakap constituency in Penang are heading to the ballot box today to elect one of two local boys vying to win the race.
Incumbent Nor Zamri Latiff – who died on May 24 – of PAS, won the seat after having defeated PKR’s Nurhidayah Che Rose with a 1,563-majority in a straight fight during last August’s state elections.
Nor Zamri’s victory ended PKR’s three-term domination since Pakatan Harapan (PH) wrested the seat from Barisan Nasional (BN) in the 12th general election in 2008.
There are 39,279 registered voters in Sg Bakap, consisting of 39,222 regular voters and 57 police personnel. The constituency, in the southern Seberang Perai district, comprises 59.36% Malay voters, 22.54% Chinese, 17.39% Indian, and 0.71% others.
This constituency has been facing several issues that have been plaguing residents for several years, such as traffic congestion and water woes, especially in Mukim 5. These issues have received more attention during the campaign.
Betting on local boys
In this by-election, PH and Perikatan Nasional (PN) are placing their bets on local boys Joohari Ariffin and Abidin Ismail, respectively, to win the seat.
Joohari is a former director of the northern branch of the Aminuddin Baki Institute and also a former senior teacher of two schools in Nibong Tebal. On the other hand, Abidin is a logistics executive who served as an aide to the late Nor Zamri and is also the vice-chief of the Nibong Tebal PAS division.
The outcome of this by-election will not affect the standing of the Penang government, which enjoys a two-thirds majority of the state assembly by controlling 29 out of 40 seats. However, PH and PN are still heavily invested in today’s poll.
PH hopes to score an electoral success for the second time this year, after having retained Kuala Kubu Baharu in the by-election held on May 11, by taking back Sg Bakap from PAS.
PH is heavily banking on the educational and professional credentials of Joohari, who has a PhD from Universiti Sains Malaysia, to woo voters here.
In addition, the coalition is heavily banking on the abilities of a government backbencher to effectively address local issues facing voters here through close collaboration with the Penang government, which cannot be accomplished by an opposition assemblyman.
BN, which is not contesting in this by-election, is galvanising its efforts to get its 5,000 members in Sg Bakap to back Joohari, in a bid to reverse the electoral trend seen in last August’s Penang elections, where party members voted for PN candidates instead.
Meanwhile, PN intends to make the by-election an avenue for voters to register their protest against the federal government for its recent move to implement a targeted diesel subsidy mechanism, which the opposition said is contributing to the rising cost of living.
Both candidates have unveiled their manifestos, with Joohari having pledged to make the constituency become a centre for halal micro-product production, upgrading facilities at Sg Bakap Hospital, ensuring the completion of water and traffic infrastructure projects, such as the Sg Kerian water treatment plant project, the Perak-Penang water project, and the construction of roads in Bandar Tasek Mutiara.
Meanwhile, Abidin also pledged to resolve the water woes and improve traffic infrastructure in the constituency, as well as forming a team of volunteers to assist impoverished residents and organise community programmes. – July 6, 2024
