State polls: 'I still have the people with me', claims former exco standing as independent in Ampangan

Datuk Dr Mohamad Rafie Ad Malek, who will be defending the Ampangan seat in Negri Sembilan as an independent.

SEREMBAN: Former Negri Sembilan exco member Datuk Dr Mohamad Rafie Ab Malek, who is defending Ampangan as an independent, says his constituents are backing him as they know has been victimised by his former party, PKR.

Mohamad Rafie, who held high-profile portfolios such as investment, industrialisation and education under the previous Pakatan Harapan government, claimed most of the people he met on the campaign trail sympathised with him.

"They know that the reason I was dropped was purely due to a political play by two individuals in PKR.

"I had an excellent service record as a state exco, am a person of high integrity, and not in any way involved in nepotism, cronyism or power abuse," he told reporters on Thursday (Aug 3).

Mohamad Rafie said he had brought development to Ampangan such as the main market and community hall during his first term as assemblyman.

"You can ask anyone in Ampangan about my performance in the past five years.

"But two people thought I was not good enough simply because I was a political threat to them and their decision was certainly not in the best interests of the people of Ampangan," he said, adding that he would have accepted the party's candidate if the person picked could perform better.

Mohamad Rafie said he chose to stand as an Independent to uphold the truth and because he still had the energy and experience to serve his constituents.

He also urged the voters not to be taken in by talk that an Independent will not be able to serve them effectively.

"No leader of a ruling party can say that they will not entertain requests from an Independent wakil rakyat who raises issues affecting his constituents.

"If we have leaders like that, they should be rejected," he said, adding that taxpayers’ money did not belong to politicians but was meant for the people irrespective of where they resided or their political affiliation.

He also urged voters in all six states facing elections soon to vote for candidates they believe could serve, and not just for the political party they supported.

Mohamad Rafie, who will be using the tree as his logo, will be up against Pakatan's Tengku Zamrah Tengku Sulaiman and Perikatan Nasional's Muhammad Ghazali Zainal Abidin.