Voters keeping their faith in Pagoh

Pagoh is an education hub in the state and has its own special economic zone. – THOMAS YONG/The Star

PAGOH is one of the hottest battlegrounds in Johor for the 15th General Election (GE15), as Perikatan Nasional chairman and incumbent Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin will be defending his position in a three-cornered fight.

He faces Barisan Nasional’s Datuk Seri Razali Ibrahim and Pakatan Harapan’s Iskandar Shah Abd Rahman.

Razali was the former MP for Muar and held the post for three terms before losing to Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman during GE14.

Muhyiddin (middle) is defending the seat against Razali (left) and Iskandar Shah.

Iskandar Shah is a geophysicist from an international oil and gas company.

During GE14, Muhyiddin, who is also the president of Bersatu, contested under the Pakatan Harapan ticket and won against Barisan’s Ismail Mohamed and Ahmad Nawfal Mahfodz of PAS with a majority of 6,927 votes.

Muhyiddin first won Pagoh in 1978. This is the eighth time that he is contesting.

Some of his achievements include turning Pagoh into an education hub and introducing the Pagoh Special Economic Zone.

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Despite the development, Pagoh has many old temples, with a few of them dating back to the 1960s.

In fact, there are more than 20 temples in the district, 10 of which are within a short distance of the Pagoh rest area.

The temples are frequented by local devotees as well as those from Singapore.

According to Kampung Baru Pagoh village chief Tai Hing Sing, 60, the San Tai Zho temple in Pekan Pagoh, is one of the more popular places of worship in the area.

Tai hopes a new temple could be built in Pekan Pagoh as the San Tai Zho temple is very old.

The temple was built in 1967 to cater to communities in Muar and Batu Pahat.

“We have around 300 people visiting the temple every day and this number is higher during the Chinese New Year period.

“Since the temple is very old, we hope that the government can provide us with a new one in Pekan Pagoh,” he said, adding the community had identified a few suitable locations.

Ladang Serampang Sri Maha Mariyamman temple secretary P. Jayaselam, 56, said the committee wanted financial assistance from the Johor government to relocate the temple built 50 years ago by plantation workers.

Jayaselam says the committee is seeking government assistance to relocate the temple out of a privately owned plantation.

“Now that the estate workers have moved out of Ladang Serampang and into the town, we hope that the government can help us move the temple closer to town so more people can visit it.

“It is presently located deep in a plantation that belongs to a private company,” he said, adding that the community was also hoping to get approval to expand the Nagamalai Alaiyam Temple near Pekan Pagoh from the current land area of 0.4ha to 0.8ha.

The temple is the first destination during the Panguni Uthiram festival before the devotees proceed to the Sri Marathandavar Aalayam temple in Maran, Pahang.

Sopian says one of Pagoh’s most famous landmarks needs an upgrade and repairs.

The festival marks the last month of the Tamil calendar and takes place annually between March and April.

Meanwhile, Selancar Village chief Sopian Yaiso said the Sultan Alaudin Riayat Shah Mausoleum in Kampung Raja Pagoh needed an upgrade and repairs.

“It is one of the famous landmarks in Pagoh and is often visited by historians conducting studies in the area.

“It is the last mausoleum of a Melaka Sultan after the empire fell to the Portuguese in the 1500s,” said Sopian.

There is also a historical mosque nearby called Masjid Jamek Sultan Alauddin Riayat Shah I, he said.