The BN director for the Galas by-election, Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, has clarified that it was normal for him not to appear in nomination centres during elections.

He said that it was unnecessary for him to be inside the nomination centre and prefers mingling with supporters outside.

tengku razaleigh speech 110310 02 Even when Tengku Razaleigh is the candidate, he would assign an agent to file nomination papers on his behalf to Election Commission officials.

"Once, I even asked an Orang Asli to be my agent when I contested for Parliament," said Tengku Razaleigh, who has been the Gua Musang MP for more than three decades.

He said that even the US presidential candidates file their nomination papers without much fanfare and his job was to canvass for votes and not publicity.

Tengku Razaleigh's absence at the VIP room of the nomination centre in Gua Musang had sparked various rumours, particularly about infighting within Umno.

This was fuelled by Tengku Razaleigh's vocal criticism of the federal government's decision to deny oil royalties to Kelantan and criticism of Umno's top leadership.

Differences aside, Tengku Razaleigh became the Umno leadership's top choice to lead BN's charge for Galas due to his influence in the Gua Musang area.

Low-key approach

Meanwhile, Tengku Razaleigh said that he plans to adopt a low-key campaign and would not be making any major speeches, instead relying on door-to-door visits to reach the 11,553 voters.

He said that the personal touch was necessary and he had been adopting this approach for a long time and even resolving personal problems faced by his constituents.

Tengku Razaleigh added that he had directed the Gua Musang BN division machinery to refrain from any personal attacks, adding that he sees this as a "friendly contest" between two rivals.

"Why I describe this by-election as a friendly one is because it makes no difference if either side wins. PAS needs to contest this seat because it won Galas the last general elections.

"Umno is contesting because Galas was previously held by BN. A win by either side would not change the political equation in Kelantan," he said.

Polling takes place on Nov 4.