Locals Want Segamat To Remain Under BN

The Segamat parliamentary constituency is among the hot seats in the 13th general election, especially when looking at the fact the opposition has hatched an ambitious plan to penetrate Johor.

The incumbent Datuk Dr S.Subramaniam from Barisan Nasional (BN) will be challenged by Datuk Chua Jui Meng, a BN renegade and former health minister who is contesting on a Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) ticket.

While political analysts expect Chua to give a tough fight against BN, the locals are hoping that they will remain under BN which understands the local aspirations and has worked out a comprehensive development plan for Segamat.

The Segamat parliamentary constituency has 47,115 voters and encompasses the Buloh Kasap and Jementah state seats.

The Jementah state seat will see a contest between its two-term incumbent Dr Lee Hong Tee from BN and Tan Cheng Choon from DAP, while for the Buloh Kasap state seat, Johor Puteri Umno head Norshida Ibrahim makes a debut by taking on ' Firdaus Masod from PAS.

A local in the Jementah constituency, Tan Mong Cho, 55, said the development efforts, peace and the vast improvement of facilities in the area was due to the hard work of the BN leaders.

"They always go to the ground, they will do their best to find a solution. So, we don't need outsiders' help," he said, referring to Chua.

A restaurant operator in Buloh Kasap, Low See Leong, 60, noted that regardless of who the opposition candidates were, they would not succeed in penetrating the BN fortress and what more when the BN representatives had fulfilled their pledges.

"Throughout the six terms that BN represented Buloh Kasap, many of the people's woes were resolved. It is also easy to do business here. Now they are fielding younger candidates, so I hope they too will bring more changes and help the people," he said.

Estate worker Balan Doraisamy, 49, said regardless of who the opposition fielded in Segamat, it was not ready to see the winds of change as BN had fulfilled all its promises made in the last elections.

"I will give my support to the candidate who can keep his word and not just make empty promises to be in power. I hope the locals will be smart enough to make the right choice," he said.

Felda Palong Timur employee, Misnan Ghani, 52, said the incumbent MP's ability in helping Felda settlers was a testament to BN's capability as the ruling government.

He said although a new face had been fielded for the (Buloh Kasap) state seat this time, BN's leadership had a proven track record which showed that any area under it would never be left out.

BN has done a lot for the Segamat parliamentary constituency including finding a solution to the flood problem that previously caused hundreds of families to be evacuated and damage to their properties.

In 2012, the federal government allocated almost RM200 million to mitigate floods caused by Sungai Muar that also involved works to raise the Gemas-Johor Baharu double railway tracks, creating an embankment to prevent waters from the lower Sungai Segamat and Sungai Genuang inundating low-lying areas.

Also, the proposed four-lane highway connecting Segamat with the North-South Expressway in Tangkak is set to attract investors to turn Segamat town into a new business hub.

The palm oil and rubber industry is the main income source for the locals here and Segamat is set to see significant changes when BN fulfils its pledge to diversify the employment opportunities for the locals.