Let’s talk Machap Jaya’s future: Pakatan hopeful hands out invitation cards, Bersama candidate says yes, BN incumbent says now is time for work

ALOR GAJAH, Oct 31 — Pakatan Harapan (PH) candidate for the Machap Jaya seat, Datuk Ginie Lim Siew Lin, has invited her two opponents in the Melaka State Election to an open dialogue to discuss development plans for the constituency.

Lim, who won the seat in the 2018 state election, said the proposed dialogue was aimed at encouraging objective and constructive discussions rather than allowing the campaign to revolve around personal attacks and criticism of opponents.

“We hope to discuss how we can develop or make Machap a better place over the next five years. We want to move away from a style of politics that consists merely of shouting or badmouthing one another,” she told reporters after the nomination process for the Machap Jaya seat at the Machap Jaya Development and Coordination Committee (Japerun) complex in Bukit Bulat today.

Earlier, she was seen handing invitation cards to the other two candidates for the seat, Datuk Ngwe Hee Sem of Barisan Nasional (BN) and B. Prasanth Kumar of Parti Bersama Malaysia (Bersama).

Lim, a former state executive council (exco) member who held the portfolios of Women, Family Development, Welfare Affairs and Orang Asli Community, described her contest against incumbent Ngwe, also known as YB Sem, as a “friendly” rivalry, noting that both had experience serving in the state executive council.

Meanwhile, Ngwe said he had yet to decide whether to accept Lim’s invitation, as he needed to review his campaign schedule, adding that the current campaign period was not an appropriate time for such a dialogue.

“For me, now is the time for work, not dialogue. I am already aware of the people’s issues, having served for five years. It is not as if I am only now asking what needs to be done,” said Ngwe, who is the state exco for Health, Human Resources and Unity.

He said his five years as an elected representative, during which he had consistently engaged with residents and addressed their concerns, would stand him in good stead in defending the seat.

Prasanth Kumar, however, welcomed Lim’s invitation, describing the proposed dialogue as a useful platform for candidates to exchange ideas and proposals for the benefit of Machap Jaya residents.

“I believe this open dialogue is a good platform for us to pool our ideas. While each candidate may have different approaches, I am confident that everyone shares the same goal, to help the community in the Machap Jaya constituency,” said the law graduate.

Commenting on his contest against two former state executive councillors, Prasanth Kumar said that although Bersama was only five months old, he had considerable experience in politics and administration, having contested the Rim state seat in the previous state election.

He had also served as Special Secretary for Community Affairs to former Melaka Chief Minister Adly Zahari, and as an officer with special duties to former Minister of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability, Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad.

Lim won the Machap Jaya seat in the 2018 state election with a majority of 1,336 votes, polling 5,550 votes in a three-cornered contest against Koh Nai Kwong of BN-MCA and Wan Zahidi Wan Ismail of PAS.

In the 2021 state election, Ngwe won the seat with 3,732 votes, defeating PH candidate Law Bing Haw by a 938-vote majority in a five-cornered contest. Lim did not contest in that election.

The Election Commission (EC) has set November 10 for early voting and November 14 as polling day for the 16th Melaka State Election.

For the latest updates on the 16th Melaka State Election, visit https://election.bernama.com/prn/melaka/2026/. — Bernama

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亚罗牙也，10月31日讯——希望联盟（PH）马查再也选区候选人拿督金妮·林秀琳邀请她在马六甲州选举中的两位对手进行公开对话，讨论该选区的发展计划。

2018 年州选举中赢得该席位的林表示，拟议的对话旨在鼓励客观和建设性的讨论，而不是让竞选活动围绕人身攻击和对对手的批评展开。

“我们希望讨论如何在未来五年内发展壮大马乍也，使之成为一个更好的地方。我们希望摆脱那种只会互相叫喊或诋毁的政治风格，”她在今天于武吉布拉的马乍也发展协调委员会（Japerun）大楼举行的马乍也议席提名仪式后告诉记者。

早些时候，有人看到她向另外两名议席候选人——国阵（BN）的拿督魏希森（Datuk Ngwe Hee Sem）和马来西亚团结党（Bersama）的B. Prasanth Kumar递交了邀请卡。

曾任州行政委员会（执行委员会）成员，并担任过妇女、家庭发展、福利事务和原住民社区等职务的林女士，将她与现任议员吴女士（又名 YB Sem）的竞选描述为一场“友好的”竞争，并指出两人都有在州行政委员会任职的经验。

与此同时，吴先生表示，他尚未决定是否接受林先生的邀请，因为他需要重新审视自己的竞选日程，并补充说，目前的竞选时期并不适合进行这样的对话。

“对我而言，现在是工作的时候，而不是对话的时候。我服务了五年，早已了解民众的问题。我不是现在才来问该怎么做，”恩格韦说道，他是负责卫生、人力资源和团结的州行政议员。

他表示，自己担任民选代表的五年间，一直与居民保持密切联系并解决他们的诉求，这将对他捍卫席位大有裨益。

然而，普拉桑特·库马尔对林的邀请表示欢迎，称此次对话是一个有用的平台，候选人可以借此交流想法和建议，造福马查再也的居民。

“我相信这种公开对话是一个很好的平台，让我们能够汇集彼此的想法。虽然每位候选人的方法可能不同，但我相信大家的目标都是一致的，那就是帮助马查普再也选区的社区，”这位法学毕业生说道。

普拉桑特·库马尔在评论他与两位前州行政议员的竞争时表示，虽然贝尔萨马只有五个月大，但他在政治和行政方面拥有相当丰富的经验，曾在上届州选举中竞选过里姆州议员席位。

他还曾担任前马六甲首席部长阿德利·扎哈里的社区事务特别秘书，以及前自然资源和环境可持续发展部长尼克·纳兹米·尼克·艾哈迈德的特别职务官员。

林冠英在2018年州选举中以1336票的多数优势赢得马查再也议席，在与国阵-马华公会的许乃光和伊斯兰党的旺扎希迪·旺伊斯迈的三方角逐中，他获得了5550张选票。

在2021年的州选举中，吴桂以3732票赢得席位，在五方角逐中以938票的多数优势击败了希望联盟候选人罗炳豪。林冠英没有参加那次选举。

选举委员会（EC）已确定11月10日为提前投票日，11月14日为第16届马六甲州选举的正式投票日。

有关第16届马六甲州选举的最新消息，请访问https://election.bernama.com/prn/melaka/2026/。——马新社

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