2 days Ago By Zahratulhayat Mat Arif
IPOH: Perak Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Saarani Mohamad has clarified that all developments announced for the Ayer Kuning constituency were approved before the recent by-election was called.Saarani pointed out that certain projects, such as the traffic dispersion project in Tapah town, had been planned well before."This project was not initiated during the by-election period.
The late Ayer Kuning assemblyman, Ishsam Shahruddin, had raised this issue long before, and the decision to approve the project was made during his tenure."The allocation for this project was approved earlier, and the work is currently ongoing as scheduled. If it were halted now, it would disrupt the timeline, and the contractor would be held accountable.
"These allocations were approved based on applications submitted before nomination day," he said.He was speaking to reporters after launching the Self-Support and Emergency Aid, Book Voucher Assistance, and AIM TVET Tour with Cikgu Saarani 2025 at Bangunan Perak Darul Ridzuan here today.On Monday, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said the government would issue a warning if any projects were announced during the by-election campaigning period.
Saarani recounted that on April 20, before the passing of the late assemblyman, he had received a letter requesting allocations for mosques, suraus, and schools in Ayer Kuning."I only opened the letter on April 24, and out of respect for his duties as an elected representative, I approved the allocations."To me, this was not an offence, as it was done in accordance with the late assemblyman's responsibilities and the people's requests," he said.
On a separate note, Saarani who is also Perak BN chairman said that the party's candidate for the Ayer Kuning by-election would soon release a manifesto outlining his plans for the constituency."A manifesto is usually presented by policymakers, especially when there is an intention to form a state government."If we are successful, the manifesto will serve as our commitment to the people.
However, for the candidate, it will focus on specific issues within Ayer Kuning," he said.The Ayer Kuning by-election will see a three-cornered fight between Barisan Nasional's Dr Mohamad Yusri Bakir, Perikatan Nasional's Abdul Muhaimin Malek, and Parti Sosialis Malaysia's K.S.
Bawani.Voters in Ayer Kuning will head to the polls on April 26, with a total of 31,897 registered voters eligible to cast their ballots.© New Straits Times Press (M) Bhd.
