ALOR GAJAH: The sole candidate of Parti Perikatan India Muslim Nasional (Iman), Abdul Aziz Osani Kasim, 52, acknowledges that he is an underdog in the Machap Jaya seat but is still confident of getting support in the state election on Nov 20.

       The Machap Baru Iman branch chief said he could be the bridge among the Malay, Indian and Chinese communities in the constituency, as he is known to them as an entrepreneur and a social worker.

       Abdul Aziz, who lives in Kampung Machap Baru here, said if elected, one of his top priorities is to increase the frequency of the bus service between the rural area and Alor Gajah town.

       "The buses now only make a return trip twice a day, in the morning and afternoon, This makes it difficult for residents in the rural area to travel to Alor Gajah town for their daily activities.

       "The Indian community also has a problem accessing their burial ground as it is located on top of a hill. If given the mandate in this election, I will provide an alternative route to the cemetery to solve this problem,” he told Bernama when met at the Iman operations room in Taman Lesung Batu Jaya here Friday (Nov 12).

       Having come from a rubber-tapping family, Abdul Aziz also wants to tap the natural resources in the area to create more job opportunities.

       He said eco-tourism has potential to generate job opportunities, especially for the youth, in Machap Jaya.

       Asked about his physical campaigning, he said his team only dropped pamphlets into the post boxes of residents in housing estates, in order to adhere to the standard operating procedures (SOP).

       "So far, I have been helped by 150 people from Penang, Johor, Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Negri Sembilan, and this Sunday, about 500 party members will go to the ground to help me,” he added.

       Machap Jaya is seeing a five-cornered fight involving Abdul Aziz, Ngwe Hee Sem (Barisan Nasional), Law Bing Haw (Pakatan Harapan), Azlan Daud (Independent) and Tai Siong Jiul (Perikatan Nasional).

       Datuk Ginie Lim Siew Lin of Pakatan Harapan won the seat with a 1,336-vote majority in the last general election.

       Early voting is on Nov 16 and polling is on Nov 20 to elect 28 representatives to the Melaka state assembly. - Bernama