THE people’s welfare and unity will be the main priorities for Pakatan Harapan (PH) if it wins the Malacca elections on Saturday, its chief minister candidate Adly Zahari said.

Adly said the new state government under his leadership will also ensure that all elected representatives, including those from Barisan Nasional (BN) and Perikatan Nasional (PN), are treated equally.

He believes the two measures will stabilise the administration of the state government to ensure longevity.

“When we govern the state, the first thing to do is to unite the people in Malacca to achieve political stability.

“That is why we outlined in the PH action plan that we should appreciate all elected representatives because they are leaders regardless of party background,” he told The Malaysian Insight in an interview.

The Malacca Amanah chairman added that his administration will ensure that every elected representative, both from the government and the opposition, is given equal allocation.

The move, he said, will show that PH not only respects the people’s representatives but also the choices made by the voters.

“We are building political stability in the state and the country,” said the PH candidate for the Bukit Katil state constituency.

Adly was PH’s chief minister when the coalition won the state in the last general election.

However, the government collapsed following defections, resulting in an Umno-led state government taking over.

The second state government also collapsed last month, prompting the state polls.

PH faces multi-cornered fights in all 28 state seats, contesting against both BN and PN.

Adly also said he will emphasise the economic aspect if PH returns to power in Malacca.

“The question of employment will be given importance. The main thing for people to generate incomes to earn a living.

“That is why our administration will be people-centric, with the help given in the form of incentives, encouragement or additional knowledge.

“Within this year, the people should be given assistance, as well as skills for them to earn a living,” Adly said.

Adly’s focus on solving people’s problems

The Amanah vice-president described the people of Malacca as lucky to be able to compare between two state governments – PH and BN/PN – as both had governed the state.

“People have the opportunity to make a comparison. I led for 22 months, (former BN chief minister) Tok Leman (Sulaiman Md Ali) led for 18 months.

“Maybe the period is unbalanced but I think it is enough for the people to make a comparison.

“Government officials have served me and the same government officials have served under Tok Leman. If asked, I am confident they and the people can make comparisons (as to who is a better leader),” said Adly.

Adly further said he will reintroduce his meet-the-people programme, which he carried out during his first tenure in office.

The programme allows the people of Malacca to meet the chief minister and present their grouses.

“From Asahan, Kuala Linggi in the north to Sg Rambai in the south, every leader can make a policy, but has it reached the people?

“One of the programmes I did was to meet people on a particular day. The people spoke and we listened.

“Among the challenges in Malaysia is that leaders are difficult to meet. When they have not been elected, it is easy to meet but when elected, it becomes difficult to meet them, let alone if he is the chief minister,” said Adly.

He said through such a programme, the government administration can solve problems faced by the people more quickly.

“For 22 months, without fail every week, I met the people and heard 60 to 100 issues.

“We can’t solve 100% of the people’s problems – some require a long time – but there is a committee that will evaluate whether the problems are solved.

“On average, we solve more than 85% of the people’s problems,” said Adly.

Malacca goes to the polls on Saturday. – November 18, 2021.