KEMAMAN: A true soldier does not admit defeat before going into the battleground and that is exactly what Tan Sri Raja Mohamed Affandi Raja Mohamed Noor is doing.
The Barisan Nasional(BN) candidate has vowed he would never concede defeat in the Kemaman parliamentary seat by-election although some quarters have been writing off his chances to produce a surprise win.
Pitted against Terengganu Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar, a popular face in the Perikatan Nasional (PN) camp, Raja Mohamed Affandi does not see himself as an underdog but described the Dec 2 contest as an balanced battle ground.
"This is far from over. I want to win...we are doing something noble and in this case there is no other option for me other than winning. I can only do it if I have the support....I want to bring the voices of the people in Kemaman somewhere (parliament) so it can be heard.
"That is the one simple reason I decided to jump (contest) into all these. I do not speak about chances but only set my eyes on winning….. the message passed to the entire election machinery (in Kemaman) is to have a winning mentality (for BN)," he said when met during his door-to-door campaign at Kampung Gong Limau here.
On BN putting high hopes on him with some describing the former Armed Forces chief as the "last man standing" to make a difference in Terengganu, Raja Mohamed Affandi said he has gone into the 'Kemaman battleground' with only victory in his sight.
"The call of duty to contest here is above everything else. I need to do this(win) for the next generation as Affandi is history. Soon, I will be somewhere in the museum and people will place me in one corner but the future generation depends on this(by-election)," he said.
On the ongoing campaign, Raja Mohamed Affandi said after a 'rusty' start which is quite normal, things are progressing smoothly.
"Just like when we start a car, it will be cranking but eventually take-off....it is the same thing. The spirit among the election machinery is high to make sure that at the end of the day, we win the constituency," he said.
Several Umno leaders who were in Kemaman to help with the ongoing campaign have placed their hopes on Raja Mohamed Affandi to pull an upset including Umno Supreme Council member Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan describing a victory in Kemaman will be the only link between Terangganu's government and the federal government.
Yesterday, Umno vice-president Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani described the by-election an
opportunity for voters to pledge their support for Raja Mohamed Affandi to put an end to Pas' dominance in Terengganu.
Pas managed a clean sweep of the parliamentary seats in Terengganu in the 15th general election (GE15), winning all eight and securing all 32 state seats for the first time during the state polls in August.
The by-election was called following the decision of the Terengganu Election Court on Sept 26 to annul the victory of Pas candidate Che Alias Hamid in GE15.
