LUNCH was out of the question again for Sungai Siput MP Dr Michael Jeyakumar as his mobile phone rang just as he was sitting down at a food court in Ipoh.

“I have to rush back as floodwaters are rising in several villages,” the two-term parliamentarian told The Malaysian Insight as he turned the key in his old Toyota Vios for the 30km drive to his constituency.

It took him the better part of an hour to drive through heavy rain to Pekan Sungai Siput, which was among the first villages to be flooded last weekend.

The soft-spoken medical doctor, who is a member of the Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) central committee, is a giant-slayer.

The 62-year-old created a stir in the 2008 general election when he defeated MIC president Samy Vellu to win the federal seat of Sungai Siput, held by the Indian-based party and Barisan National (BN) component since 1958.

Dr Jeyakumar beat Samy Vellu by just 1,821 votes. Samy Vellu, who was Works Minister then, had held Sungai Siput since 1974.

In the 13th general election in 2013, Dr Jeyakumar kept the seat with a higher majority of 2,793 votes, defeating MIC deputy president SK Devamany.

Indian estate workers and Chinese smallholders make up 70% of the Sungai Siput electorate, with Malays forming the remainder.

While it may look like a safe seat for the popular Dr Jeyakumar, defending it in the next general election may be an uphill task if Perak DAP makes good on its plan to contest the seat. A three-cornered fight would split the votes and possibly hand it back to BN, Dr Jeyakumar said.

Perak DAP chief Nga Kor Ming in September said the party, which is  opposition pact Pakatan Harapan, will be contesting Sungai Siput “in view of PSM’s unilateral decision to contest DAP-held seats”.

Raised fist

Dr Jeyakumar will be defending his seat under the PSM logo – a raised clenched fist – for the first time since being voted in. In the last two elections, he stood on a PKR ticket.

This was because PSM was not part of the now defunct opposition pact, Pakatan Rakyat (PR). It isn’t part of the new PR incarnation, PH, either, and is not interested in becoming so, too.

PSM had previously said that it was snubbed when it applied to join PR in 2012. In interviews, Dr Jeyakumar had said that PSM wasn’t even invited to the discussions when PH was formed in 2015.

Dr Jeyakumar, formerly a government doctor, won the seat for PSM even though the two state seats, Lintang and Jalong, within the constituency parties went to other parties. Lintang is a Malay-majority seat (56%) while Jalong has more Chinese voters.

In the last election, Umno bagged Lintang with a majority of 3,977 votes defeating PAS while DAP took Jalong with a majority of 6,769 votes.

The federal seat, overall, has about 40% Chinese voters, said Dr Jeyakumar.

“During the last elections, I received around 80% of their (Chinese) support. I also obtained 33% of the Malay votes.

“If DAP fields a candidate here, their votes will be lower than mine on account of the Malay sentiments against them here,” he added.

He said Indians, who comprise 21% of total voters, will similarly be split in a three-cornered fight between PSM, DAP and BN.

“In 2013, I only obtained 53% of the Indian vote and I have been working here for the past 40 years. Some of them will definitely go back to BN if DAP contests here,” said the Ipoh-born Universiti Malaya graduate.

Unfamiliarity with PSM

Dr Jeyakumar calls Sungai Siput his second hometown and he has been active in the Indian community here since his student days. In all, two-thirds of his life have been spent serving the community who work as rubber tappers.

Muthu from Taman Muhibbah said Dr Jeyakumar was hardworking and responded very quickly whenever there was trouble.

“The doctor is always helping people here and his team has set up a residents’ committee to help people. This is the second time a flood has happened here this year but he’s always around,” said Muthu when met at Pekan Sungai Siput.

Floods affected parts of the town and the housing estates of Taman Shangri-La, Taman Muhibbah, and Kampung Veerasamy. Residents blamed the floods on the the nearby hill slope development.

“Until last month, there hadn’t been any flood here for 20 years. But this year, two floods have occurred,” said another resident who wanted to be known as Vasu.

Dr Jeyakumar is aware that even though his face is well known to his constituents, not many of them are able to distinguish between PSM and the opposition parties under PH.

“The people may recognise me but not many of them know PSM or recognise the logo,” DrJeyakumar said.

Public service worker Hafiz said many people knew the MP because of his long track record of service to the constituency.

“Although DAP has a state representative here in Jalong, he’s rarely seen among the Sungai Siput residents,” said Hafiz.

Dr Jeyakumar first contested the seat under a DAP ticket in 1999 but lost to Samy Vellu by 5,259 votes. 

In the following election in 2004, he again ran for the seat under PSM but lost by a bigger majority of 10,349 votes.

After his win in 2008, he sponsored the construction of a bridge in the area by selling off the approved permits he was entitled to as an MP.

“I have always told the opposition coalition, Pakatan Harapan, that I can keep BN from retaking this seat,” he said, adding that whether or not DAP will listen is another matter. – November 12, 2017.