SPECIAL REPORT | Nestled in Alor Gajah, about 30km away from the historical city centre of Malacca, is the small rural town of Machap Baru.

A place steeped in Hakka culture, it was formerly an agricultural town surrounded by rubber plantations and orchards but is seeing a new life as a tourist town, with its weekend food market called Machap Walk.

But outside of that, the town retains the characteristics of a tight-knit community, where everyone knows everyone and the mornings are spent congregating at the local haunts.

It is not so surprising then that the national political divide, which can sometimes devolve into ugly criticisms and feuds, appears not to have much place in the town.

While the ruling party and the opposition hurl accusations and criticisms at each other on a daily basis, the residents of Machap Baru know how to separate politics from personal interactions....