Siew Ki rises from blogger to PH trump card in Balakong
BANGI: Wong Siew Ki is not resting on her laurels despite being widely seen as the favourite to retain the Balakong state seat for Pakatan Harapan ( PH) in the by- election on Sept 8. The candidate from the DAP has also refused to ride on the popularity of PH and its former assemblyman, the late Eddie Ng Tien Chee, to win the seat.
“I am not taking things easy although I live in Serdang and I am quite familiar with this area. I am working hard to meet the people here and try to get them to accept me, and vote for me.
“The late Eddie was a much-loved man here and he did tremendous work for Balakong and its people. But I must not assume that the voters here will feel the same for me. “I accepted this as a challenge, so I must work hard to win their confidence,” the spirited 32-yearold told Bernama in an interview here. Wong is in a straight fight with MCA’s Tan Chee Teong in the by- election which was called following the death of Ng in a road accident on July 20.
The Election Commission has allocated an unprecedented 21 days for the campaign. The nomination was on Aug 18 and polling is on Sept 8.
Wong said the long campaign period was an advantage as it would give her sufficient time and the opportunity to introduce herself and get acquainted with as many constituents as possible.
The middle child of three siblings, who hails from Ipoh, was brought up indoctrinated in the belief not to challenge authority. But her political awakening came during her years at Universiti Putra Malaysia. After graduating in Chinese Studies in 2009, she started her blog ‘ Tien Fei’ and actively wrote about current issues affecting the country.
Wong also worked as a tuition teacher and honed her skills in filmmaking.
Among her notable works was Jatuh, a documentary about Teoh Beng Hock, a former political aide to Seri Kembangan state assemblyman Ean Yong Hian Wah, who jumped to his death from the Malaysian Anti- Corruption Commission building following an interrogation in 2009. The documentary became the starting point of her foray into politics.
She was offered by Ean Yong to be his political secretary after the 13th general election.
“I accepted the offer although I did not join DAP because I felt the time had come for me to meet the people face-to-face and reach out to them rather than hide behind the screen and use my keyboard to highlight my concerns. The opportunity also allowed me to get an insight into every aspect of a political party. It took me one year to make my own assessment before I decided to join DAP in 2014,” said the affable DAP Serdang Division Wanita deputy chief.
She later served as a councillor at the Subang Jaya Municipal Council for two years before resigning last week to contest the by-election.
Wong believes that her stint as a councillor gave her an advantage. She said that having an understanding of the workings of the government system would allow her to work more effectively as a state assemblyman if she were elected.
She had pledged to carry on the unfinished work and the aspirations of the late Ng, such as resolving the water woes faced by many in the constituency. She said she would also introduce plans to develop Balakong into a more vibrant township, including tapping into its rich cultural and heritage potential.
“There is more to Balakong than just being known as a light industrial area. I hope more activities can be organised here in Balakong to promote its culture and the arts, and to engage more constructively with the youths in order for us to build a healthy community,” she said. — Bernama