Kapar voters want jobs for youths, better public transport

Commercial and retail area along Jalan Besar greets people driving into Kapar town. — Photos: ART CHEN/The Star

KAPAR – along Selangor’s west coast – is popular among tourists, especially birdwatchers who head to an ash pond located about 8.5km from the town.

The pond is a sanctuary for migratory birds stopping over en route from Siberia to Australia, and its importance as a sustainable habitat conservation site is known worldwide.

With a loud hailer, a tourist guide tells a group of tourists that the 35-year-old power station in the area is the largest in Malaysia, before he ushers them into a local seafood restaurant along the busy Jalan Klang-Teluk Intan main road that traverses the town.

Traffic volume has increased these past two weeks as the nomination day for the 15th General Election (GE15) approaches and the political temperature inches ever higher.

The various kopitiam in town provide a place to discuss local happenings as conversations oscillate around candidates, political parties and the weather due to the recent frequent downpours.

Kapar, which is a town in Klang district, has 188,095 voters, including 12,391 Undi18 voters who can make a difference in GE15.

The parliamentary constituency has over 70% Malay voters.

Last week, PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced that incumbent Kapar MP Datuk Abdullah Sani Abdul Hamid would stand for reelection.

Prior to GE14, Abdullah Sani had served two terms, from 2008 to 2018, as the Kuala Langat MP.

Candidates from other coalitions have yet to officially announce their candidates as at press time.

Nevertheless, the voters here already have a clear idea of what they want to see.

First-time voter Rozita S. Rustam, 19, an IT student at a local college, said she hoped that the Kapar MP would champion subsidised tertiary education for those in the low-income bracket.

“Students from B40 families must be given free laptops, while those from the middle-income families could be given subsidised rates for laptops.

“Opportunities for youths must also be listed in the manifesto,” said the youngest of four siblings.

Another first-time voter, Amylizi Yatul Fateha, 23, who works as a warehouse assistant, said she would support a candidate who paid attention to the voice of young people.

“We need a candidate who will focus on the people’s welfare, as well as improve the roads and public transport where the light rail transit could be linked to Kapar, making it easier to travel,” she said.

Amylizi added that it was time for Kapar – which has a big population (332,000 people as of 2015) – to get its own government hospital.

A stallowner in Kampung Tok Muda in Kapar, Mazila Yusoh, 45, said she was looking for a candidate who would prioritise local economic needs and provide business grants to help traders.

Mazila also said that her family of some 35 eligible voters wanted candidates to ensure that there would be no goods and services tax imposed, and that petrol price for RON95 be retained at RM2.05 a litre.

Oil palm plantation smallholder Mastor Sakim, 73, said regardless of which coalition forms the government after GE15, smallholders were concerned about the rising inflation.

“We need a government who will cap the rising interest rates that affect our business loans.

“Our people want a stable government. Our minds are made up, we wait for polling day,” he said.

Real estate consultant Mohamed Umar Peer Mohamed, 61, said Kapar, with its unhurried lifestyle, was changing as plantation estates were being developed into commercial and industrial hubs.

“Due to the development, vernacular schools are being moved to urban areas,” he noted.

He said residents in mature townships in Kapar, which included Bandar Bukit Raja, Meru and part of Bandar Setia Alam, felt sustainable development would augur well for them as it would bring more retail and commercial offerings.

“Gated housing with security, artistic green landscape and properties facing water bodies has attracted people from other districts to move to Setia Alam and Meru as it offers various amenities,” said Mohamed Umar.

“One reason people are moving to Kapar is the accessibility via the New Klang Valley Expressway, North Klang Straits Bypass and Federal Highway which connects to surrounding townships and other areas within the Klang Valley.

“Other than that, the cost of living and food prices here are much lower than in Kuala Lumpur,” he added.