YOUTH-BASED party Muda’s hopes for the Bandar Utama seat are in the hands of 27-year-old Abe Lim, who admitted she faces uphill battle.

The huge barrier standing in her way is incumbent Jamaliah Jamaluddin from DAP, who first won the seat in 2018.

Gerakan’s Nur Aliff Mohd Tafid is the third candidate, standing under the Perikatan Nasional banner.

Lim believes that there are many issues that need to be resolved if she was given a chance to serve the people. 

“The challenge is not who challenges who for the seat, but who offers real solutions to the people.

“There has been a lack of urgency in addressing issues that affect people’s everyday lives and I want to be the start of that change. Muda can do that,” the UK-trained lawyer and climate change advocate told The Malaysian Insight. 

Lim said she wants to bring up issues that are overlooked and considered insignificant by the previous assemblyman.

“I would like to say that Muda and I are not here to split the votes.

“We want to raise real issues and find effective solutions to them. If that is significant for the people, they will vote for us.”

Lim is a trained lawyer from Oxford Brookes University, and she has also completed an executive business programme at Stanford Business School in the US. 

She said she wants to represent Bandar Utama residents and to champion their rights in the state assembly.

“We can see that those fighting (for their rights) in the area include senior citizens.

“They should not be doing this as it is the responsibility of their elected representative. Instead, they should have a peaceful time. 

“If I were to put myself in their shoes, I would be so exhausted, repeating the same problems to the assemblyman every time.

“I need to be that elected person who solves (the problems) quickly and for the long term.”

In 2018, Jamaliah polled 38,561 or 91% of the total ballot to win by a majority of 34,679 votes in a three-way contest.

She defeated Barisan Nasional (BN) candidate, Ch’ng Soo Chau from MCA and an independent, both of whom lost their deposits.

Local council elections

Another issue that is close to Lim’s heart is to have local council elections so that the people’s interests are better-served and done so with accountability.

She said it is important for local councils to have structured governance and accountability and be helmed by elected people instead of appointed representatives. 

“With an elected leader in local councils, and in the case of Bandar Utama, the MBPJ, the public can hold them accountable for not carrying out their duties. 

“A structured local government gives the people back the power and that is very important,” she said.

This is also the aspiration of her party, which has pledged to bring back local council elections.

In a statement, Muda urged voters in Selangor to vote for their candidates in the state polls to strengthen the community and to herald a new era of democratic representation and progress.

Another crucial element that is needed in Bandar Utama is green spaces for the community, said Lim.

“Give people the parks, urban gardens to make them happy and enjoy living in Bandar Utama.

“Giving them these places of leisure ensures that public health is taken care of, and people are happy.”

She said another issue that needed to be addressed is the upkeep of the BU3 community hall.

Here, she said, the local council had installed brand new air conditioner units but had failed to provide electricity for them.

“Because of the construction of the BU11 community hall, they chose to focus on maintaining that new hall and have neglected the hall in BU3 by claiming that they can’t fund power generation for the new air-cons.

“BU3 community hall used to be popular, but now it can’t be used. No more weddings and community events. 

“The authorities are not accepting accountability… there must be proper responsibility,” she said.

Lim also wants the state government to show more transparency over the Petaling Jaya Dispersal Link expressway.

“The PJD Link project needs to have more transparency. Declassify project agreements so the public can have a say,” she said, admitting that traffic congestion was a major issue in the constituency. 

“Congestion needs to be addressed. Bandar Utama residents need not spend two hours a day in traffic. 

“Public transportation needs to be efficient to provide alternative travel options for the people.”

However, days after Lim’s interview, the caretaker Selangor menteri besar, Amirudin Shari said the state government had decided to scrap the PJD Link Expressway project.

He added that the impact assessment reports submitted by the developer were not satisfactory and did not meet certain conditions set by the state government, particularly its social impact assessment report.

Political newbie

As for her first-time venture into politics, Lim said she has known about Muda since 2020. 

“To represent them now in this state election is a big opportunity. They are a young and passionate team. The core principles have always been pro-rakyat.

“And that is one of our strong points as a party because we can voice out any issue without hindrance,” she said.

Lim added that Muda’s focus on environmental issues was a big draw for her.

“There are projects like the PJD Link that do not agree with the people, and we cannot condone that,” she said. – August 1, 2023.