CAMERON HIGHLANDS: Independent candidate in the Cameron Highlands by-election Wong Seng Yee, who has been dubbed ‘Abang Topi’ for cultivating his image as a local farmer, cast his ballot papers at the voting centre at Sekolah Jenis Kebangsaan Cina (SJKC) Bertam Valley, here at 8.25am.
Wong arrived at the polling centre at about 7.55am and immediately became the focus of media attention, as he is the only candidate eligible to cast his vote in the Tanah Rata state constituency, which comes under the Cameron Highlands parliamentary constituency.
Another independent candidate, Salehuddin Ab Talib, will vote at the polling centre in Sekolah Kebangsaan Sungai Koyan Satu, which comes under the Jelai state seat, the other seat in the parliamentary constituency.
Pakatan Harapan (PH) candidate M. Manogaran and Barisan Nasional (BN) candidate Ramli Md Nor are not registered voters here.
Speaking to reporters after casting his vote, Wong said that he was pleased to exercise his responsibility as a Malaysian.
The flower grower said that during the two-week campaign period, he was able to achieve what he had set out to, which was to voice grouses vis a vis land and other local issues.
Meanwhile, senior citizen Cheng Ten Shu, 65, was among the earliest to arrive at SJKC Bertam Valley and was among the first to cast his ballot when the polling station opened.
He said he arrived early as he needed to travel to Kuala Lumpur to take care of personal matters.
