MCA's 7 'god-fathers' go all out to save face in Merlimau, Kerdau

Although both Merlimau and Kerdau only have small Chinese communities that make up a tiny percentage of the total vote, the MCA is going all out to make sure that their embarrassing loss of Chinese support in Tenang is not repeated.
MCA president Chua Soi Lek has appointed seven deputy ministers as 'foster parents' in the voting areas just like what was done in the Tenang by-election in Johor last month. "They will be responsible for monitoring the voters, and looking into their problems and solving them as soon as possible," said Melaka MCA chief Gan Tian Loo was reported as saying in the press.
The 7 god-fathers are Donald Lim Siang Chai, Senator Gan Ping Sieu, Youth chief Datuk Wee Ka Siong, Lee Chee Leong, Hou Kok Chung, Senator Heng Seai Kie and Soi Lek's son Tee Yong.
MCA aggression and 'instant noodles'
The MCA aggression has not been lost on the Pakatan Rakyat especially DAP.
According to Kota Melaka MP Sim Tong Hin, "the response from the Chinese community is good. We can maintain the support of the Chinese for Pakatan". However, he also acknowledged the fire-power in the form of election goodies being dished out to voters in Merlimau.
"I think we won't be able to sink to that level. In any case, this is a by-election and it was clear during the recent closed-door debate between MCA Youth and DAP Youth, only a small crowd came. No one was interested in the MCA's anti-Islamic attack against PAS. This is the main telling sign, so even if voters take the MCA goodies, we are sure that come General Election, they will swing back to Pakatan," Sim told Malaysia Chronicle.
Merlimau is a state seat just 30 minutes drive from Melaka City with voters numbering around 10,700. Out of this number around 65 per cent Malays, 20 per cent are Chinese and the rest are Indians.
Although categorised as semi-rural, Merlimau is not a sleepy hollow as there is a large student population here that is very well connected to the Internet.
MCA has also been holding nightly ceramah (political speeches) at housing areas and trying to meet each and every Chinese in the constituency. To an extent, their hard work is paying off although the DAP is also stepping its campaign.
"I will be cautious and will not predict how many Chinese are going to vote for PR as it is still too early at this stage," Er Teck Hwa, the DAP MP for Bakri, told Malaysia Chronicle.
"Whatever it is, BN is using the might of the government machinery and finances to their advantage as they are promising instant goodies in the form of projects and allocation of funds for just about anything and everything; so we are fighting with our hands tied behind our backs."
In Kerdau, only about 500 odd non-Malay voters
The Merlimau seat fell vacant due to the death of its BN assemblyman Hidhir Abu Hassan, who died after suffering a heart attack last month. In the 2008 General Election, Hidhir had won by 2,100 plus votes.
The current contest is a one-to-one fight between BN's Roslan Ahmad, aged 44, and PAS candidate Yuhaizad Abdullah, aged 38.
As for Kerdau, the absence of Pahang DAP chief Leong Ngah Ngah has been made an issue by the mainstream newspapers. They have accused him of deliberately leaving for a holdiday in Thailand because he wanted to avoid working with the PAS leaders.
However, Kepong MP Dr Tan Seng Giaw who was campaigning in Kerdau brushed off speculation that Leong's absence would hurt the Pakatan campaign.
"DAP has got plenty of people, we don't rely on one man alone. The Chinese response is good and based on my campaigning on the ground meeting the Chinese voters we can get at least 60% of the Chinese vote," Tan told Malaysia Chronicle.
"By-elections are very tough for PR as the BN government is throwing all their weight in a centralised location so if we lose by a higher margin compared to the general election, it is not unusual. The coming 13th General Election will present a different scenario altogether."
In Kerdau is a straight fight between Umno's Syed Ibrahim Syed Ahmad, aged 44, and PAS candidate Hassanuddin Salim, aged 43. The seat fell vacant following the death of Umno assemblyman Zaharuddin Abu Kassim last month.
There are about 8,000 plus voters in Kerdau. The Chinese make up around 400 of total voters and the Indians around 100. BN won the seat with a majority of 1,600 in the 2008 General Election.