NURUL Syazwani Noh won the Permatang seat in the August 12 Selangor elections vowing to ensure Barisan Nasional’s (BN) promises in the 2018 general election will be fulfilled.

She won on the Perikatan Nasional (PN) ticket, but the promises were made by her father, Noh Omar, who used to be an Umno strongman and MP for Tanjong Karang where Permatang is located.

Noh went on to support PN, which secured the federal seat in last year’s general election – a portent of BN’s declining fortunes in most states north of Kuala Lumpur.

“I will fight for my constituency, especially after the state assembly starts.

“I will be the voice of the people,” Nurul Syazwani told The Malaysian Insight.

The mother of four defeated Pakatan Harapan’s Mohd Yahya Mat Sahri by a 1,700-vote majority.

Nurul Syazwani, 35, joined Bersatu after her father was sacked by Umno early this year.

She said she has been in the Permatang constituency almost daily trying to solve problems faced by the people.

“Although I am not officially sworn in as the assemblyman, I’m trying to tackle issues brought to me.

“I’ve received many complaints about damaged roads, street-light defects and more.

“Since I’m familiar with the constituency and have connections with the agencies, I can take quick action to resolve the complaints,” said Nurul Syazwani, the only woman who won under the PN banner in Selangor.

She said she would also focus on issues faced by the Indian and Chinese residents.

“There are some issues faced by the Indians that have not been resolved. One of them is the Tamil school here,” she said.

“Prior to the 2018 general election, the federal government had already allocated funds for the school project. The groundbreaking ceremony was even carried out in the presence of former prime minister Najib Razak.

“But after the change of government, probably the funds had been reallocated elsewhere. So the school is not completed.

“Besides that, there are a lot of estates in Permatang, where pensioners and the elderly have no place to stay once they retire.

“When my father was the urban wellbeing, housing and local government minister then, there was a budget and land allocated (to build the houses).

“I’m not sure if the plan has been postponed or shelved after the change of government. I think these are the major issues faced by Indians in Permatang that need to be resolved.”

Nurul Syazwani, who is a lawyer by profession, said prior to being elected as the assemblyman, she had engaged her law firm to check on the housing status for the Indians in the constituency.

“When I’m in the state assembly, I’ll be their voice,” she said.

PN, led by former Selangor menteri besar Azmin Ali, made major inroads in Malaysia’s richest state, winning 22 state seats in the polls, denying PH-BN a two-thirds majority.

The PH-BN pact won 34 seats and Sungai Dua assemblyman Amurudin Shari was appointed menteri besar for a second term. – August 26, 2023.