![\"http:\/\/buletinonline.net\/http:\/\/buletinonline.net\/v7\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/09\/dungalasbyelection.gif\"](\"https:\/\/buletinonline.net\/v7\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/09\/dungalasbyelection.gif\")
Indian voters in the Galas constituency have shut out Barisian Nasional describing Umno candidates as \u201cbureacratic and protocol-conscious\u201d. Until the 2008 general election, Galas was an Umno-BN stronghold and the 200-strong Indians were diehard supporters of Umno-BN. Then came the late PAS rep Chek Hashim Sulaima.<\/p>\n
In just under two years, the 58-year-old Check Hashim’s hands-on approach in tackling ground issues earned him the trust of not just the Indians here but also the Chinese.<\/p>\n
The Chinese make up 20.8% of voters in the Galas constituency and BN is hoping that they will throw their support for Umno.<\/p>\n
Will the Chinese, like the Indians in Galas, openly declare their support for PAS? Not likely, said a banker here.<\/p>\n
“It’s not their style to talk… the Chinese are watching not only Galas but also national politics. They are not sentimental. They don’t trust anyone now,” he said.<\/p>\n
“Umno is banking on Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah’s popularity here, but he is not an independent. In the last election, people rejected Umno, not the candidate. That sentiment is still prevalent.”<\/p>\n
For the Indians here, Chek Hashim was a refreshing change from earlier Umno representatives. According to them, there is a marked difference between Umno and PAS representatives.<\/p>\n
The most obvious is PAS’ willingness to work at gaining the trust of the Indians in the Galas constituency who were once a marginalised community.<\/p>\n
The 200 Indian votes may seem insignificant, but in the 2008 general election, Chek Hasim wrested the seat from Umno’s Saufi Deraman by a 646-vote majority.<\/p>\n
The seat fell vacant on Sept 21 following the demise of Chek Hashim. The Election Commission has fixed Nov 4 for the by-election.<\/p>\n
Galas today is quietly mourning the loss of Chek Hasim if local views are any guide.<\/p>\n
No empty talk from former rep<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n Raman Palam, 58, a trader, said: “When we voted for the PAS assemblyman, we did not know what to expect. All the years under Umno reps, we got no help.<\/p>\n “They hardly ever came here. We heard Umno reps attended meetings here and promised to do things but they never did for us. I don’t remember seeing them in Galas often,” he said.<\/p>\n In contrast, Chek Hasim was always accessible to his constituents, irrespective of their socio-economic or political leanings.<\/p>\n There was, according to Raman, “no hierachy or protocol or bureaucracy to worry about”.<\/p>\n “The PAS man was always accessible to us. He worked very hard to gain our trust and changed our persective towards PAS.<\/p>\n “We were once devout supporters of Umno-BN but when Chek Hashim took over, we have seen a lot of differences.<\/p>\n “He was always working and did not engage in empty talk. He has helped many of the people here, especially old people and single mothers.<\/p>\n “He has always kept his word to us unlike Umno assemblymen,” Raman said, adding that with PAS, the Indian community here was treated with much respect.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Indian voters in the Galas constituency have shut out Barisian Nasional describing Umno candidates as \u201cbureacratic and protocol-conscious\u201d. Until the 2008 general\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[],"bo_wartawan":[],"bo_jenis":[],"class_list":["post-3990","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-c48-news"],"better_featured_image":null,"yoast_head":"\n