For the past eight days, the Bagan Pinang constituency has gone from a serene tourist destination to a busy campaign hub for Barisan Nasional and the Pakatan Rakyat opposition front.

bagan pinang nomination 031009 pas crowd Bagan Pinang is located between Pasir Panjang down south and Lukut on the north in Negri Sembilan.

It has been a focus of attention following the call for the country's ninth by-election after the sudden death of its elected representative, Azman Mohammad Noor from Umno/BN on Sept 4.

Covering an area of 131.44 square kilometres, Bagan Pinang which is within the Teluk Kemang parliamentary constituency includes a portion of the ever popular Port Dickson.

The constituency has two main Malay kampongs namely Kampung Si Rusa and Kampung Bagan Pinang and it is also surrounded by palm oil and rubber plantations.

Known for its white sandy beaches and hotel and resorts, this particular tourist area equipped with many resorts and hotels had somewhat lost its charm over the years, partly due to the beaches and sea being dirty.

azlan There are also plenty of abandoned buildings littered around the area, as businessmen and the local council failed to revive such projects. This had resulted in it marring the landscape of the area.

Overlooking the Straits of Malacca, the residents are mostly farmers, fishermen, those involved in the tourism industry or in the army following the presence of several army camps.

Also located nearby is Tanjung Tuan or the Portuguese name of Cape Rachado, within the Malacca state. The area also attracts migratory birds and is home to various species of rich mangrove swamp and tropical forest.

Avid bird watchers would usually flock to this area between May and September to watch the different species of raptor migratory birds that visit then.

Several ancient Dutch shipwrecks have also been found and salvaged by the government during the mid 1990's. These are vestiges of a battle for Malacca and Cape Rachado during the 17th century.

A marine archaeology expedition was done on the two Dutch war ships, the Nassau and Middelburg, which formed part of a fleet of 11 Dutch ships which had laid a siege on Malacca's well known fort A Famosa during 1621, before the arrival of the Portuguese fleet to break it.

Different battle looming

As with the heavy naval battle that took place almost 400 years ago, on-shore Bagan Pinang is seeing a pivotal contest for the past one week with BN trying to defend this seat against PAS.

bagan pinang by election 061009 bn billboard 06

PAS has chosen 45-year-old state commissioner, Zulkefli Mohamad Omar, as its candidate, while BN is resting its hopes on former Menteri Besar Isa Samad to defend this stronghold.

For the past few days, party workers had been trying to woo the support of 13,664 voters within this state constituency which comprise of 62.77 per cent Malays, 20.74 per cent Indians, 10.96 per cent Chinese and 5.54 per cent others.

Out of the 13,664 voters, a total of 4,604 are postal voters who began casting their votes on Thursday.

azlan Come Sunday, the constituents will cast their votes in eight polling stations namely SJK (T) Ladang Atherton (502), SJK (T) Ladang Siliau (708), SJK (T) Ladang Bradwall (451), SJK (T) (C) Ladang Sua Betong (835), SK Si Rusa (333), SK Panglima Adnan Bagan Pinang (2,412), SK Kampung Baru Si Rusa (1,533) and SK Telok Kemang (2,286). (In parenthesis are the total ordinary voters which amounts to 9,060)

The voters would cast their votes beginning 8am tomorrow until 5pm. The votes would then be tallied at the Port Dickson Municipal Council where results are expected to be announced about 8pm.

Already police have advised tourists and visitors from coming to Bagan Pinang and Port Dickson tomorrow to ensure the smooth running of the by-election.

During the March 8, 2008, elections, BN's candidate Azman obtained a 2,333 majority by polling 6,430 votes compared to 4,097 posted by PAS candidate Ramli Ismail.

NONE This will be the ninth pivotal by-election for the country after March 8, and all eyes will be focused here. Out of the nine by-elections, BN has only won one and did not contest in another.

BN and Umno has lost all contests against PAS, suffering defeats in Kuala Terengganu, Bukit Gantang, Manek Urai and Permatang Pasir. The Islamic party will be hoping to drop the gauntlet on Umno by registering its fifth.

Hence, this is seen as a pivotal contest to revive back Umno and BN's dwindling fortunes after performing poorly in by-elections following the March 8 political tsunami.

This has been the directive adopted by Negri Sembilan mentri besar Mohamad Hassan and Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin that the political tsunami ends here in Bagan Pinang.