Vote BN as Deepavali gift, says MIC

GUA MUSANG - Voters from among the Indian community in the Galas state constituency are asked to vote the Barisan Nasional (BN) as a Deepavali gift, said MIC Youth chief T. Mohan.

He said the Deepavali celebration on Nov 5, one day after the by-election for the Galas state seat, would be more meaningful if the BN were to win.

Speaking to reporters after attending dinner with the people here, in conjunction with the Deepavali last night, he said although the number of Indian voters in the constituency was only 185, they were capable of helping the BN to achieve victory in the by-election.

"Support from the Indian voters for the BN is most encouraging following the door-to-door approach adopted by the MIC machinery. I'm confident that they will choose the BN as their elected representative to champion their cause," he said.

In the by-election, BN candidate Abdul Aziz Yusoff will face Dr Zulkefli Mohamed, from PAS, in a straight fight.

Mohan said the MIC had identified several problems faced by the Indian community such as land for housing.

Meanwhile, Gua Musang MIC chief Dr G. Rengaraju said house ownership was the main problem faced by the Indian community in the area and in this context, the announcement by Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin on the implementation of the first public housing project here, was a most welcome news.

He said most of the Indian community here worked as mechanics, or worked on other people's farms and earning not more than RM1,000 per month, and with the high cost of house rent of between RM300 and RM500 per month, they had to share a house with others to reduce their cost of living.

"There are some house owners but the number is small and for those who are renting, the number of tenants can be as high as 12 in one house.

"In view of the housing problem, the Indian community hopes that more low-cost houses would be built here," he said. - Bernama