BARISAN Nasional (BN) still has the hearts of residents at the Semarak PPR (people’s housing project) flats who say they have only ever known an MP from the ruling coalition.

Other contenders from Pakatan Harapan (PH) parties, they said, are “outsiders”.

BN has held the seat for 23 years but its winning majority in the 2013 election was 1,390 votes in a straight fight, turning it into a marginal seat.

This time, its popular former MP Zulhasnan Rafique will contest against PH’s Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad and a PAS candidate.

“Everybody is telling me Zulhasnan Rafique has been doing a good job when he was in power, he knows us, what can outsiders offer?” R. Sarah told Malaysia Decides after a BN ceramah at the flats tonight which drew about 200 people.

Sarah, 27, who works as a lab assistant, said her vote would go to the best candidate with a proven track record.

“So now we want the best, and my vote is for the better.

“And the one thing that is strong in the community here is unity across races, the next candidate should keep that in mind,” Sarah said who has been living here for more than 10 years.

Another resident of PPR Semarak Abdul Rauf Abdullah said outsiders who want to contest here are insincere.

“Outsiders who come here, what do they know? They are not here to develop the place, they are here for the seat.

“BN has served us well in terms of welfare since the 1990s,” he said.

Rauf said the people there wanted more development in the area and activities that promote racial unity.

“There should be more events here, and notify us before these events are done, so that we can allocate time to participate in the events or programmes.”

Rauf said the ceramah tonight had motivated him to vote for BN in the general election.

Asked about the goods and services tax, which voters across the country have complained about, the father of three said that most people had already “gotten used” to it.

“GST is everywhere, not only Setiawangsa, I think everything is the same.

“Only when there is GST we have to pay a bit more, but we will get used to it in the end.

But another resident Siti Juwita Mohd said Zulhasnan had not been their MP in he last term and wondered if he would be up to date with people’s concerns here.

“He spent his last five years in (the US) as an ambassador, so his information about things here might be old.

“So when he contests here again we hope he will be an upgrade from Ahmad Fauzi Zahari in terms of development,” she said, referring to the BN incumbent.

The 44-year-old who has lived in Setiawangsa for 11 years added that the community at PPR Semarak valued racial harmony as well as infrastructure development.

Zulhasnan is set to take over from Fauzi after returning from his five years as the Malaysian ambassador in the United States. – May 6, 2018.