KUALA LUMPUR: MIC may have a chance at its first attempt to win the Teluk Intan parliamentary seat in the 15th General Election (GE15), but it will certainly be an uphill task.
Political analyst Dr G. Manimaran said the country’s biggest Indian party will have to step up the campaign strategy it used in the Johor and Melaka state elections to capture the P76 parliamentary seat.
"In terms of political strategy, MIC’s move to give up the Cameron Highlands parliamentary seat, and contest in Teluk Intan is seen as a safe move.
"There is a chance that (MIC) will win in Teluk Intan, but it will be a tough fight," said Manimaran, who is also one of the authors of "Pilihan Raya Demokrasi Malaysia, Tanding, Pilih, Menang, Tadbir", when contacted by Bernama.
Prior to this, Bernama had reported that MIC was expected to contest the Teluk Intan parliamentary seat as a "trade off" for the Cameron Highlands seat which was given to Umno during the 2019 by-election.
Another political analyst, Datuk B. Anbumani, expressed similar views and said that the Indian party must field a candidate who is acceptable to the local community to win the seat.
"MIC should not field a parachute candidate in Teluk Intan. The decision to move to Teluk Intan carries political risks for MIC and Barisan Nasional (BN)," he said.
Meanwhile, MIC coordinator for the parliamentary seat, Datuk T. Murugiah, said MIC had laid a strong groundwork in the area since 2019, before the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Taiping-born MIC vice-president who was raised in Sitiawan, not far from Teluk Intan, said he had been spending weekends in Teluk Intan since 2019 and would remain in the constituency until GE15.
"During the implementation of the movement control order, MIC provided food items to Teluk Intan residents. MIC also provides assistance for flood victims,” he added.
Murugiah, who was an army officer and also a teacher before entering politics, said Teluk Intan has 87,000 registered electors, with over 17,000 or nearly 20% of them from the Indian community, while the Malay and Chinese electors are at 40% each.
In GE13, DAP candidate Seah Leong Peh beat Gerakan president Datuk Mah Siew Keong in the contest for the Teluk Intan parliamentary seat with a majority of 7,313 votes.
However, the seat fell vacant after Seah’s death and Mah, who represented BN recaptured the seat by defeating DAP candidate Dyana Sofya Mohd Daud with a majority of 238 votes.
In GE14, Perak DAP chairman Nga Kor Ming won the Teluk Intan seat, defeating Mah with a majority of 11,179 votes. - Bernama
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