PMTG PAUH Twenty-four hours since he was nominated as BN's candidate in the Permatang Pauh by-election, Suhaimi Sabudin, while admitting that he was not so confident initially, is now much more sure of himself.

The turnaround came after he met voters, young and old alike, in the constituency.

"When I told them that I am BN's candidate, the response I received is that they said they will help, that is, that they will vote for BN.

"I asked them to give me a chance to serve them in the next three years," said Suhaimi in BN's daily conference in Permatang Pauh today.

Asked on his strength, Suhaimi said he was trained in quantity surveying and project management.

"With my skills in engineering and if there are allocations given by the federal government, I can plan development projects for Permatang Pauh," he said.

The 44 year old quantity surveyor is a managing director of a construction company. He is also Umno Permatang Pauh division secretary.

Meanwhile, Penang Umno liaison committee chairperson Zainal Abidin Osman ( left ), who was also at the press conference, said that they had received a "positive response" from voters.

"They told us that they had voted many times before but they only see the candidate during nomination day and the two weeks leading to the election.

"After that, they will not see the MP for the next five years. They asked whether it will be the same this time around," he said.

Assuring that Suhaimi will always be in the constituency, Zainal said Suhaimi was here to serve the people.

"He studied here since primary school until university, he stays here and even his mother stays here.

"The difference between him and the other candidates is that he's here to serve. And if he wins, he will only have one post, that is, as Permatang Pauh MP."

Meanwhile, when asked whether he will take part in a debate with the other candidates on issues such as the goods and services tax (GST) and the usage of laws such as the Sedition Act and Prevention of Terrorism Act (Pota), Suhaimi said he will give it consideration.

However, he added he had yet to receive an invite for the debate.

Several civil society groups, such as the north chapter of Bersih and Kita Lawan, are organising the debate session slated to be on May 4.

The Permatang Pauh by-election sees Suhaimi, PKR's Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, independent candidate Salleh Isahak and Parti Rakyat Malaysia's Azman Shah Othman in a four-cornered fight.

 

Polls for the by-election is set on May 7.