With only a few days left before the polling day, Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow and his Pakatan Harapan team continued to press ahead by visiting as many people as possible.
One of the places that Chow, who is contesting the Batu Kawan parliamentary seat, visited today was 888 Family Food Court in Jalan Sentral Juru.
Many patrons and food stall operators were pleasantly surprised by Chow’s visit as Chow and his team handed them election pamphlets and calendars.
Some took the opportunity to request Chow to have photographs taken with them. Chow happily obliged.
Among the people present were Deputy Chief Minister II Prof Dr P. Ramasamy, who is also the Perai assemblyman, Bukit Tengah assemblyman Gooi Hsiao-Leung, state PKR adviser Datuk Law Choo Kiang, former state exco member Datuk Lydia Ong, Seberang Perai City Council coucillor Rachel Teh and Chow’s special affairs officer Lau Keng Ee.
“Batu Kawan is a huge place and it is not possible to cover every inch of the ground here.
“But I will try my best to meet with as many residents as I can and listen to them,” said Chow, who has been receiving a very encouraging response in his series of walkabouts since nomination day on Nov 5.
Batu Kawan will see a five-cornered fight as Chow, a four-term Tanjong MP, faces Lee Ah Leong (Parti Rakyat Malaysia), Tan Lee Huat (Barisan Nasional), Wong Chia Zhen (Perikatan Nasional) and Ong Chin Wen (Warisan).
Throughout the campaign so far, Chow has constantly appealed to the people to give Pakatan Harapan a second chance to take Putrajaya to transform Malaysia.
He called upon the people, including the young voters, to come out in droves to vote wisely to “recover, redeem and reclaim Malaysia from a kleptocratic government for a brighter future.”
Later, Chow visited the Sri Selva Vinayagar Hindu Temple in Perai to meet and greet young voters in the vicinity.
In his brief speech there, he urged the young people to go out on Nov 19 to cast their votes as the future lies in the hands of the upcoming generation.
“I am grateful to be given the opportunity to spend some time with all of you here today.
“As you all know, Seberang Perai, particularly Batu Kawan, is the engine of growth in Penang.
“Rapid and constant developments in Penang have given an opportunity for Seberang Perai to rise, and it is undeniable that this part of our beautiful state is laid down with great potential everywhere.
“Thirty six years ago, when I first entered the political scene and made my appearance in Tanjong, I have come a long way from overseeing the Local Government portfolio as a state executive councillor to becoming a Chief Minister and so on.
“Now, I have been given the mandate to contest the Batu Kawan parliamentary seat. It is a promising land, especially considering the ongoing industrial growth we are witnessing here.
“Despite daily walkabouts surrounding major areas in Batu Kawan, it is possible that we could miss several places since we are only left with a few days before the election campaign period ends.
“But I am sure we have shared valuable moments with the locals, especially listening to issues and challenges in their respective areas,” Chow said in his speech.
He also stressed that the Federal Government has often failed to assist the Penang government in its initiatives to raise the standards of the country, especially major infrastructure projects.