'I will speak without fear or favour, Pejuang's Rafique tells Shah Alam voters
Rafique Rashid, the Pejuang's Shah Alam contestant
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The #kitajagakita taglines during Covid and again during the worst floods end last year got Rafique voicing out further that the rakyat do not need politicians who do not deliver services on time.
The lawyer is in a four-cornered fight in Shah Alam, a parliamentary conttituency with 195,000 voters. Out of that 121,000 are Malays, 21,000 Chinese and 19,000 Indian voters.
Rafique, the Pejuang contestant is against Barisan Nasional's Isham Jalil, Pakatan Harapan's Azli Yusof and Perikatan Nasional's Dr Afif Bahardin.
"I decided to step into politics because politics in this country needs to be changed. We have given too much time thinking the right way is by selectng division or branch heads to be the candidates.
"I want to show people that normal citizens have the right to stand for elections. Speak up for the community. Be heard at highest place of law at the Dewan Rakyat," he told Sinar Daily.
He said the flash floods and Covid saw NGOs and neighbours helping their neighbours. "It was normal people on the ground. Not politicians. It showed the rakyat could do a better job than politicians," he said.
He calls this the "wave of the people".
Due to that, he said politicians should be those from the groud up and understand the issues affecting their voters.
Rafique, a lawyer who lives and work in Shah Alam said there are no concrete flood mitigation plans in the area. "I want Shah Alam to be a city where start ups can strive with an active presence of online economy."
He also spoke on the worsening traffic in Shah Alam. He said certain parts of the city is "a horror due to the jam".
"There are simply too many interchanges in and out of Shah Alam," he added.
He also wants proper walkways connecting Section 14, 9, 2 and 8 to encourage people to walk. "This will reduce traffic and encourrage micro mobility, indirectly enhancing coffee shops and cafes and others small businesses, along the way," Rafique said.
The 45-year old also wants crime rate to be reduced further, and enjoy family day with more no car days at certain parks on weekends.
"Shah Alam is special as each section is a township within a township. I want to make this even more sustainable," he added.
