An early warning is being sounded, Hulu Selangor constituents appear to be fully conscious of the power of the vote and not in the least intimidated by the presence of political bigwigs in their midst.

It is accepted practice and this is our chance "to demand what should be ours", said 23-year-old S Kavitha, a clerk at the Gemilang Pintar Sdn Bhd, a stone mining company.

The young voter explained that the elders in the area are not "vigorous" enough to get their concerns across and always waited for help to come to them.

She had taken a day off from work to meet with Transport Minister Ong Tee Keat.

Ong ( bottom at head of table ) was on a walk about in Hulu Selangor today to meet the people and address their needs.

NONE The minister, who is the Pandan MP and former MCA president, made his first stop at the Yee Kee Kopitiam (coffee shop) at Kampung Dato Harun in Serendah.

He later held a dialogue session with some 40 MCA members as well as several Indian villagers at the MCA branch.

"I'm not going to waste this privilege... I'm here to ask to for help continue with my studies which I had to give up two years ago," said Kavita.

She was pursuing her Diploma in Information Technology in a private college in Kuala Lumpur, a three-year course, but had to drop out as her family was unable to support her any longer.

"It doesn't matter if he (Ong) can't give me the loan I need, because he is not in charge of this but I will continue to approach everyone I need," she said.

Self-employed M Batumalai, 41, on his part, was on a mission to plead for a Tamil medium primary school in the vicinity.

"There are a few hundred Indian people in Serendah.. There is a Chinese medium school and a national school but no Tamil school," he said.

Ringing out litany of woes

Most families send their children by school bus and fork out about RM30 per child monthly , to the nearest SJK(T) Rawang, almost 15km from Serendah, considered lavish expenditure for the locals.

According to Batumalai, the population comprise mostly factory workers, taking up odd jobs part time.

"We also need other types of development nearby, like more factories or businesses which will help solve our dilemma... now we have to travel to Rawang or Kuala Kubu Bharu (KKB), and there are times that people can't go to work because they just don't have enough for the bus fare," he said.

"We were told a minister was coming today so we are here to ask for assistance," he said.

NONE With him, were several widowed single mothers and an elderly couple seeking financial aid to repair their leaking roofs.

"These people are already living off the money provided by the Welfare Department, where will they get the money to fix their roofs?" asked Batumalai.

It does not matter who the candidate is, as long as they fulfil their promise, he added.

Meanwhile, Goh Suet Lin, 50, a fruit seller for the past 30 years said that she would very happy if the campaigners would help get her a hawker's license.

"I have been trading at a restaurant for five years now and the rent is high.

azlan "Although I have applied for the license, we still haven't heard anything yet," she said.

Besides the hawker license, Goh said that there is also a need for flood management.

"When it rains, the water rises and our houses are ruined," she said.

There were also grievances from several villagers, who requested anonymity, about their Temporary Occupation licence (TOL).

About ten families had approached MCA to get their TOL's converted to land titles, which were apparently rejected by the Pakatan-run state government last year.

Ong said that all complaints not addressed during the meeting, will be compiled by the division head and referred to him later.

The April 25 Hulu Selangor by-election follows the death of PKR MP Zainal Abidin Ahmad last month. Nomination day is April 17.

There are 64,500 registered voters in the constituency, with 52.7 percent Malays, 26.3 percent Chinese and 19 percent Indians and other races at 1.7 percent.

Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Rakyat are locked in a fierce battle for the seat and representatives from the rival parties have been campaigning vigorously since Zainal's death.

Two fights reported in Hulu Selangor