PETALING JAYA: Even though he is no longer an MP, Tan Sri Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah (pic) still occupies a special place in the hearts of Nenggiri’s Orang Asli community, says Dr Mohd Yusri Ibrahim of polling outfit Ilham Centre.
He added that the former minister’s personality gives Barisan Nasional a slight advantage in the by-election.
“The coffee shop talk with many Orang Asli in Gua Musang is that Tengku Razaleigh, or Ku Li, is like the ‘Raja’ (Ruler) of Kelantan. That is how influential he is,” he said in an interview.
He said Tengku Razaleigh represents a nostalgic factor for the Orang Asli in Kelantan.
“If he can use his influence, he can bring out the Orang Asli vote for Barisan,” said Yusri, who is Ilham Centre’s head of research.
The Orang Asli vote, which the think tank estimates to be between 10% and 13% or 2,026 and 2,634 of Nenggiri’s total voters, is critical, given that Barisan lost Nenggiri to Perikatan Nasional in the 2023 state polls by a margin of just 810 votes.
Ilham Centre’s own surveys in Nenggiri found that in the 2023 state election, less than 50% of Orang Asli voters turned out to cast their ballots.
Yusri said Perikatan, which has realised this, is investing a lot of resources and energy into canvassing for support among the community.
“Perikatan is going deeper and getting closer to the Orang Asli with campaigns led by the PAS supporters wing. Their campaigns are also starting to be accepted by the Orang Asli in the area,” he added.
Barisan is fielding Kelantan Umno Youth chief Mohd Azmawi Fikri Abdul Ghani against state religious education coordinator Mohd Rizwadi Ismail of Perikatan in the by-election slated for Aug 17.
Speaking at an online discussion on Tuesday, Perikatan leader Dr Afif Bahardin said the coalition has also deployed supporters from Sabah and Sarawak to campaign among the Orang Asli of Nenggiri.
“We want to show that Perikatan is open to all communities including the Orang Asal of Sabah and Sarawak,” said the Bersatu supreme council member.
The Kelantan government has also gone into the Orang Asli settlements in Nenggiri to listen to and solve their problems,” he told an episode of “Wacana Sinar” organised by Sinar Harian Online.
