K KANGSAR POLLS It’s less than 24 hours before the people of Kuala Kangsar go out to vote. And while BN seems to have the upper hand, many voters are having a hard time making up their minds.

This is based on responses from Malay voters whom Malaysiakini met in the constituency, which consists of both the Manong and Bukit Chandan state seats.

The Chinese may be touted the kingmakers in this by-election, but with more than 20,000 registered Malay voters here – thrice the number of Chinese voters – it is clear the Malays will be the deciding factor on who eventually wins.

Royal town it may be, but as a semi-urban constituency, national issues such as 1MDB and the RM2.6 billion donation seem to have little effect on voters here.

Take petai (bitter bean) and fruit seller Azilah Mat Isa (photo), for example.

Asked for her opinion on the issues, the 43-year-old said they would have no bearing on how she would vote tomorrow.

However, the self-professed Umno supporter revealed she was still undecided. She wasn't too happy about her economic situation, either.

“It wasn't this bad during (former premier Dr) Mahathir’s (Mohamad) time,” she told Malaysiakini.

Once a rubber tapper, she quit her job due to falling rubber prices. Now forced to sell petai with her husband, Azilah said buyers complained to her over how, at RM5 per strip, it was “expensive”.

“The petai are taken from Perlis, I sell 20 to 30 of them everyday, so I get around RM100 to RM150 daily.

“This is not enough, the price of everything has increased. I hope the price of things will go down – hopefully BN can help the rakyat in this issue,” she said.

Rubber tapper Hasbollah Nordin, 70, had voted for PAS since the 1960s. Yet, when met by Malaysiakini, he had yet to make up his mind on whom to cast his ballot for.

Like Azilah, Hasbollah (photo) said he had not been paying any attention to the 1MDB and RM2.6 billion donation issues.

Instead, he lamented the fall in the price of rubber, pointing out how he only earned RM400 per month.

But he added that his age and frequent body aches also prevented him from tapping rubber daily.

Affected by GST 

BN supporter Rahimahwati Ibrahim, on the other hand, admitted she was affected by the Goods and Services Tax (GST) when it was first implemented.

But the banana crisps seller said she now realised the taxation system was for the country's good, citing other developed countries with GST in place.

Taxes aside, all she wanted was a Muslim representative for Kuala Kangsar. But this did not mean she would support the call for hudud to be made into law.

“I'm not opting for PAS. Hudud is good, but I have to think first,” she said.

Speaking to Rahimahwati, it was clear she was a big BN supporter.

But even she admitted she had taken note of national issues such as 1MDB, the RM2.6 billion donation and even Rosmah Mansor's use of a private jet - an issue that PKR lawmaker Rafizi Ramli brought to the town.

But then again, there's always room for improvement, she said.

Fellow BN supporter Fatimah Manap, too, did not fuss about the national issues plaguing the country.

A native of Manong, the 62-year-old was looking forward to the construction of the promised Manong bridge.

“We’ve asked for it (the bridge) for the past six terms. Hopefully this time round they will fulfil their promise,” she said, in response to Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak who last week announced the approval of RM43.5 million to construct the bridge.

Describing herself as a simple ‘kampung’ woman, nothing else really mattered to her.

Min Din, 43, claimed he was a distant relative of Parti Amanah Negara (Amanah) candidate Ahmad Termizi Ramli.

After having previously voted for PAS, he was now in a quandary.

It used to be easier before, he said, but now with Amanah in the picture, he had a lot of thinking to do before coming to a decision.

But one thing was for sure – he would vote for the party which he believed had a better chance of winning.

“I will vote for it so that it can defeat BN,” he said.

Amanah may not even be a year old, but Min believed it was stronger than PAS due to its allies.

He also stressed that should he vote for Amanah, it would not because of his ties to Termizi.

“I will vote based on the shared ideologies,” said Min, thumbing his nose at the various scandals plaguing the country.

Store keeper Naqib Ariffin, on the other hand, did not make it a secret that he would not be casting a sympathy vote for BN’s Mastura Mohd Yazid.

“Although I want BN to govern us, this does not necessarily mean I must vote for the candidate.

“Voting based on sympathy does not ensure development in Kuala Kangsar,” said the 29-year-old.

He also observed how the opposition's nightly ceramah sessions had somewhat educated the locals on national politics.

Amanah, he added, stood out more when it came to campaigning on national issues.

“Amanah does not harp on being an Islamist party, and as a country which is multicultural, that is more appropriate,” he said.

As for PAS’ hudud, Naqib said it did not follow the Quran fully.

But fried chicken seller Lud Zamuri Nordin Zainuddin (photo) was all for having an Islamic country.

“I support PAS because I want Islam in politics and the country’s administration. I’m also for hudud. Cutting the hand of someone who steals would lead to a better society,” he said.

As for possible ties between PAS and Umno, Lud said there should be a limit to their relations.

“Yes, I don't like issues such as 1MDB and the RM2.6 billion donation, that's why I think PAS shouldn’t be too close to Umno,” said the 42-year-old.

Presence of Mahathir has little to no effect

Retired ex-police officer Osman Salleh had noticed how BN had not really acknowledged the 1MDB scandal, and had instead branded the issues brought by the opposition as ‘mere allegations’.

The 52-year-old, therefore, might even spoil his vote as a sign of protest.

However, he believed that former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad's presence in the town had little to no effect on the locals.

“It's because he’s part of the past, he no longer has influence. He is only taking advantage of the situation to achieve his goal – removing Najib,” he said.

Although he believed Mahathir would not influence voters, Osman admitted he was curious to see the former prime minister, who had been in town twice.

“Because it’s not every day that a former premier comes here,’ he said.

Housewife Rabiatul Adawiyah Mohd Ramly was also an undecided voter.

But what stood out for her was Mastura’s lack of campaign efforts.

Although she understood that Mastura had to observe her iddah (mourning period), she wondered what happened to the liquid-crystal display (LCDs) BN said would be used in place of Mastura coming to the ground.

“I only saw it once. So I don't think it has had any impact.

“I know that they try to go from house to house, but they don't really ask about the problems faced by the people, they just ask us to vote for BN,” she said.

Mastura faces PAS' Dr Najihatussalehah Ahmad, Amanah's Ahmad Termizi Ramli and independent candidate Izat Bukhari Ismail Bukhari at the June 18 polls.

The by-election was triggered upon the death of Mastura's husband Wan Mohammad Khair-il Annuar Wan Ahmad in a helicopter crash on May 5, during the Sarawak polls campaign.

Kuala Kangsar has 32,949 registered voters of which 22,496 are Malays, 7,757 Chinese, 2,287 Indians, 330 Orang Ali and 29 Sarawak and Sabah bumiputera