In a battle between the bureaucrat and a self-made entrepreneur in the Manek Urai by-election, many see the odds stacked against BN candidate Tuan Aziz Tuan Mat.

They believe the 39-year-old Tuan Aziz does not wield enough influence to win over voters from the rural area.

The Kuala Krai youth chief, however, said that the perception was wrong and it would not deter him from going all out to win the contest on July 14.

Tuan Aziz who resigned as manager of state economic agency Kelantan Selatan Development Authority (Kesedar) today, told Malaysiakini: I believe BN is capable of unseating PAS.

Although BN has won only won twice in Manek Urai, in 2004 and 1982, Tuan Aziz reckoned the ruling coalition may just be on the losing end this time around.

manek urai by election umno bn candidate tuan aziz tuan mat 290609 "Just look at the track record when BN won in 2004 (general election), we performed well (in the state constituency)," he said.

He said his biggest challenge would be wooing the discerning younger generation who take national and local issues seriously.

"We need their support as they play a vital role in determining the direction of the votes," he said, quickly adding that the older voters were just as important.

Tuan Aziz (left) will face PAS Kuala Krai division treasurer Mohd Fauzi Abdullah, a 50-year-old fish wholesaler and a businessman, in the by-election.

Born and bred in Kuala Krai, the nearest town in the largely rural Malay-majority Manek Urai constituency, Mohd Fauzi is a familiar figure among the people.

Tuan Aziz claims he has the full support of all Kelantan Umno division chiefs despite reports to the contrary.

"I talked to the division leaders and I have their full support to contest in the by-election," he said.

'Allegations are baseless'

He, however, conceded that there were ‘certain quarters' more interested in indulging in speculation and spreading lies and, dismissed it as "normal" during elections.

"Besides, members should not be unhappy over my candidacy as we are from the same party," he said.

Less than 24 hours after Tuan Aziz's candidacy was announced, the webspace has been abuzz with allegations that he was involved in ‘abuse of power and corruption".

manek urai state seat 220509 The postings on the internet alledged that he lived beyond his means when he was CEO of Kesedar Perkilangan Sdn Bhd (KPSB), a position he held prior to his appointment as manager of Kesadar.

The website claimed that on account of him not being able to account for lavish lifestyle, Tuan Aziz was demoted to division manager with paycuts and allowances deducted.

He is also alleged to have gone on ‘dubious' overseas trips, and taking along ‘unrelated' officers to several Southeast Asian countries like Vietnam and Thailand for marketing purposes.

There are also claims that he had abused his powers in awarding KPSB contracts and lobbying for the supply of fertilisers when he was running for Umno Kuala Krai Youth chief.

Tuan Aziz, however, denied these allegations as baseless and said when he was Umno youth chief, he was never involved in the Kesedar factory operations.

'Officials came on trips for exposure'

"I have never even been to Thailand or Vietnam when I was with Kesedar...you can check this out for yourself," he said.

He said he had only been to Cambodia for the selling of cooking oil in 2007.

On the ‘unrelated' officers who accompanied him on official visits, Tuan Aziz said the purpose was to give these officers exposure and experience and this was done on a rotation basis.

Tuan Aziz also denied that he had lobbied for fertiliser suppliers when he was running for the Umno Youth chief, saying that the decision to give out contracts was not up to him.

"As far as I can remember, the suppliers already had the contracts awarded to them even before I become the CEO of Kesedar, so there was no lobbying on my part. The decision to give out contracts was also up to the committee in charge of agriculture," he said.