JOHOR BARU: The authorities must be fair and not play favourites when monitoring the standard operating procedure (SOPs) of the Johor state election, says a candidate here.

       PKR's candidate for Larkin, Dr Zamil Najwah said that his team was slapped with a RM1,000 compound notice on Monday (Feb 28) morning during a walkabout at Kampung Melayu.

       "My team of only about four people were just handing out pamphlets to the people in a market in Kampung Melayu when they were issued the compound.

       "According to the Johor Baru health district department, we failed to adhere to the SOP for handing over the pamphlets face-to-face.

       "We have no problem following the SOP and I understand this is to curb the spread of Covid-19 but I think this is pretty unfair as other parties were also doing the same thing but were not issued any compounds," he said when met at Bandar Baru Uda on Wednesday (March 2).

       He noted that the pamphlets handed out contained his profile and were meant to allow Larkin voters to get to know him better.

       "At the same time, we also learnt that there will be a Keluarga Malaysia carnival this weekend at the outdoor compound of a mall here.

       "This carnival will definitely involve more people and I question the logic of allowing such an event to take place when we are getting compound left, right and centre for smaller events," he said.

       He told the authorities to be fair and to ensure that all parties get treated equally.

       "When I was applying to get a permit to hold a ceramah in Larkin, I was told that attendees of not more than 100 people are only allowed to be inside of the operation room and not in the canopy set outside of the building.

       "However, I later saw another party hosting a ceramah session in Larkin with attendees seated under tents set outside.

       "I asked one of the authorities at the scene and was told that it is allowed under the SOP. This to me is rather unfair as I was briefed that it was against the SOP when I applied for my permit earlier," he claims.

       Dr Zamil will be facing a six-cornered fight against Umno's Mohd Hairi Mad Shah, Malaysian United Democratic Alliance (Muda)'s candidate Rasid Abu Bakar, Parti Pejuang Tanah Air (Pejuang)'s Mohamad Riadz Mohamad Hashim, Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu)'s candidate Zulkifli Bujang and Independent candidate Norramadan Buan.

       The Johor state election is on March 12, with early voting on March 8.