Disputed MyPPP president M Kayveas believes that if he contests in the upcoming Cameron Highlands by-election, BN would be unlikely to field a candidate from MIC.
"If I am announced as a candidate (for Cameron Highlands), BN will not give the seat to MIC. This is my opinion, I may be wrong.
"They know I have worked there for four years, I am so familiar with the people.
"Mathematically, it would be wrong (from them to field a candidate)... because you see, among Indians, I am more popular than MIC there," he told Malaysiakini today.
Aside from his years of working in Cameron Highlands and his apparent popularity among voters, he believes MIC factionalism in the constituency would also work against them.
'Chosen candidate'
The Cameron Highlands seat has traditionally belonged to MIC.
Kayveas had previously lobbied hard to contest the seat in the 14th general election, but BN eventually picked MIC's C Sivaraajh as its candidate.
Kayveas later quit his presidency in MyPPP, though he later returned and announced that MyPPP was leaving BN.
He told Malaysiakini that he enjoyed the "freedom" of not being in any coalition, as the party could then make its own decisions without being beholden to anyone else.
The MyPPP supreme council is set to hold a meeting later today to discuss whether it will stand in Cameron Highlands.
Kayveas said he is optimistic of the outcome, and confirmed that he will be the chosen candidate if the supreme council agrees to contest.
The Cameron Highlands by-election was triggered when the Election Court declared the seat vacant after determining that vote-buying had led to Sivarraajh’s win in GE14.
MIC did not appeal the decision, and the Election Commission later announced a by-election, setting Jan 12 as nomination day and Jan 26 as polling day.
The EC has also since disqualified Sivarraajh from contesting or voting in polls for five years.
The MIC vice-president won the seat in a five-cornered fight with 10,307 votes, a slim 597 votes more than Pakatan Harapan candidate M Manogaran.
Harapan is once again fielding Manogaran as its candidate, with BN yet to announce a contender.
PAS and PSM will be sitting out of the polls, with the former stating that it would support an opposition candidate of its choice. - Mkini
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