Ready to serve: (From left) Raven Kumar, Saraswathy and Vidyananthan. — Bernama

       JOHOR BARU: The newly elected MIC assemblymen want to focus on developing their respective constituencies and providing the people with better job opportunities in an effort to bring Johor’s economy forward.

       K. Raven Kumar, who successfully defended his Tenggaroh seat with a 1,356 majority, said he wanted to focus on developing the tourism and agriculture sectors of his constituency in the Mersing district.

       “I am very grateful to the voters for giving me a chance to continue serving them and I will definitely give my very best,” he said.

       He added that he also planned to push for road improvement works to be carried out at the Kota Tinggi-Mersing road.

       “Many have expressed concern about the condition of the Kota Tinggi-Mersing road, which is in need of an upgrade.

       “I plan to take up the matter and voice the concerns of the people at the federal level so that an allocation could be given for the improvement works,” he said.

       First-term assemblyman N. Saraswathy said she wanted to address the income gap issue in Kemelah, especially following the Covid-19 pandemic.

       “We will also identify areas where help is needed urgently, and work closely with non-governmental organisations and civil society organisations to educate the people on how and where they could get assistance.

       “Being an educationist myself, I will ensure that soft skills are taught extensively so that the future generation can get better opportunities,” she added.

       The state MIC Wanita chief, who won the seat with a 1,611 majority, said it would be easier for her to help and serve the people as an assemblyman.

       Kahang assemblyman R. Vidyananthan said he would continue to push for infrastructure development and skills training for his rural constituency.

       He said there was a need to bridge the gap between the rural and urban areas, especially via digital Johor programmes to improve Internet connectivity.

       Vidyananthan, who is also Johor MIC chief, said his constituency had the biggest Orang Asli community in the state with nine villages and about 1,000 people.

       “There are about 500 Orang Asli voters in my area,” he said, adding that he would focus on helping all communities.