Only PSM candidate has signed up for Monday’s debate

SEMENYIH: The University of Nottingham Malaysia campus stands tall on a 50ha site in Jalan Broga here, and is one of the many symbols of development in this constituency.

Since its official opening on Sept 26, 2005, the university has produced thousands of talents in several areas, including in the engineering sector.

Amid the backdrop of the Semenyih by-election, the campus is also set to play host to a prestigious event — a public debate between the by-election’s candidates — on Monday.

However, there’s a snag. Only one candidate, Parti Sosialis Malaysia’s Nik Aziz Afiq Abdul, has confirmed his participation in the debate, which is organised by the Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (Bersih).

There has been no word whether philanthropist Kuan Chee Heng will join the debate but the by-election’s two main figures — Pakatan Harapan’s Muhammad Aiman Zailani and his rival, Zakaria Hanafi of Barisan Nasional — have said they would not be joining the debate.

Aiman had said he was “not a follower” of debates, while Zakaria said he was more interested in meeting the people than participating in a programme to “convince a small group of critics”.

In turning down the invitation, Aiman and Zakaria had, perhaps, taken into consideration the outcome of a live debate held during the recent Cameron Highlands parliamentary by-election.

Only PH’s M. Manogaran and the two independents, Wong Seng Yee and Sallehudin Ab Talib, participated in that debate, which garnered more than 790,000 viewers on social media.

BN’s Ramli Mohd Nor had rejected the invitation as he was unhappy with the alleged threats issued by a PH leader against the Orang Asli in Cameron Highlands.

Ramli ended up making history in Malaysian politics by becoming the first member of the Orang Asli community to become a member of parliament.

Bersih 2.0 chairman Thomas Fann said the debate, which was organised as part of a reform of the country’s election system, could help candidates create greater awareness on local issues.

“It is not about declaring a winner and loser, but for the audience to judge who they want to vote for,” he said.

Political analyst Professor Dr Mohd Azizuddin Mohd Sani, an advocate of public speech, said a public debate would give the candidates an opportunity to share their vision and aspirations with the people.

“We must understand that some outside voters are unaware of who the candidates are.

“Such programmes will provide a platform for candidates to introduce themselves and show their capabilities in handling criticism and issues.

“I personally welcome such programme as it is a clear sign that the country is moving forward towards upholding democratic principles,” he said.

Azizuddin, however, said the public debate would unlikely provide any competitive edge to the candidates since voters might have already decided on who they wanted to vote for on March 2.

“In Malaysia, the voting trend is that voters cast their votes based on the political parties candidates are attached to.

“Maybe the candidates can win some votes if they make a strong appearance and provide a solid case on why they should be chosen as the next Semenyih assemblyman.”