The Sungai Buloh dilemma

Even PKR supporters have to decide between Khairy, who has PM potential, or relatively unknown Ramanan

UNTIL the past 48 hours, media reports on the Sungai Buloh constituency were about the dilemma of PKR supporters on whether they should vote for Khairy Jamaluddin of Barisan Nasional.

Sungai Buloh, which stretches from parts of Subang to the low-cost flats of Kota Damansara and even to the affluent Tropicana, is now the hottest battleground.

One news report even suggested that Barisan has gained the lead with the charismatic Umno candidate’s foray into the constituency.

Without a doubt, KJ, as he is popularly known, has earned his stripes and while Barisan may not be the overwhelming choice in the area, he is acknowledged as a competent and proven candidate.

But the fight has taken a fresh twist with Khairy now declaring that he hopes to be prime minister one day.

Speaking at a rally on Tuesday night, he urged the voters to back him as, “God willing, one day, I want to be your prime minister. But to do that I must first win here.”

As expected, his Pakatan Harapan opponent Datuk R. Ramanan rebutted, saying that even Khairy’s party Umno did not want him as a PM, describing it as “laughable” and that if Barisan wins in GE15, KJ may not even become a minister.

But Khairy has read the sentiments of the voters well because almost all survey findings have placed his name as a possible choice for PM.

He may not rank higher than Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim or Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, but he is there on the list.

In a poll by Ilham Centre, KJ was placed fifth in a list of nine names, with Umno president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahidi Hamidi at the bottom. The 1,622 respondents were from all races.

From a Persatuan Penyelidik Negara and 02 Malaysia poll, the list of 12 choices for PM had Anwar in pole position but KJ was in third spot, just behind Ismail Sabri. Ahmad Zahid was not on the list.

Among young voters, PKR’s Nurul Izzah Anwar was the No. 1 choice for PM at 27%, while Khairy had 24%.

Among Chinese voters, Anwar was the most popular pick and Khairy came in second among the 14 names, according to Huayan Policy Institute and Centre for Malaysian Chinese Studies.

Khairy is certainly the man to watch, whatever the pre-nomination day speculation on whether he would run in Rembau, Port Dickson, Kuala Pilah, or, as it turns out, Sungai Buloh.

Khairy, like Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Tengku Aziz, who is cutting his teeth on the other well watched battleground of Kuala Selangor, is one of the few younger politicians who are seen as capable technocrats.

Tengku Zafrul was a successful banker before he was asked to give up his lucrative career to steer the country’s economy at the advent of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Khairy, who after the ups and downs of a tumultuous political career over the last two decades, was tasked with helming the Health Ministry at the height of the pandemic, replacing a stuttering start by his predecessor Datuk Seri Dr Adham Baba.

By all accounts – even those of his political foes in Pakatan Harapan – Khairy did a remarkable job and Malaysia is ranked among several Asian countries, including South Korea and Singapore, which handled the pandemic and the vaccination rollout better than most, even when compared with developed countries like the United Kingdom and the United States.

If he had been fielded in Kuala Pilah, Rembau or Port Dickson – all in his home state of Negri Sembilan – it would have been an easier passage than the Pakatan stronghold of Sungai Buloh, which was won by PKR’s R. Sivarasa in the last three general elections by increasingly huge margins.

It’s party politics that landed Khairy in Sungai Buloh, but surprisingly, PKR chose to replace Sivarasa with a controversial candidate – Ramanan, a former MIC treasurer-general who had been forced to leave that party under a cloud.

Ramanan, however, is no walkover as he has not pulled his punches despite having to take on a big name.

There have been murmurings of resentment among Pakatan campaigners over Ramanan’s candidacy as he comes with baggage.

A search online will come up with plenty of negative news, but he has taken the trouble to tell the media that his legal issues were a civil matter.

But that has not stopped the media from throwing challenges at him, including questions over the lack of detail in his asset declaration.

Sungai Buloh has now become a toss-up between Khairy, who proved his capabilities as Health Minister, and untested contender Ramanan, who has been on the defensive.

Predictably, there have been increasing personal attacks on Khairy and the Sungai Buloh contest is becoming a slugfest that symbolises the “season of madness” which typifies election campaigns throughout the world.

Ultimately, the constituency’s 158,090 voters will have to decide whether to cast their ballots for a candidate who, at 46, has the potential to be a PM; or for a candidate who will be just a number in Pakatan.

For Pakatan’s hardcore supporters, it will be a clear case of voting with the head or on raw emotions and unquestioned party loyalty. It looks set to be an exciting fight ahead.