PADANG SERAI: Barisan Nasional (BN) candidate Datuk C. Sivaraj has stepped up his campaign in the Padang Serai parliamentary election, but Pakatan Harapan (PH) candidate Dr Mohamad Sofee Razak is still hopeful he will face Perikatan Nasional (PN) in a straight fight for the constituency.
Sivaraj said BN has not informed him about any decision on his candidacy after PH gave way to BN in the Tioman state seat election.
"I have yet to be contacted by the party leadership (about my candidacy). I am still campaigning as usual. In fact, we are getting more vigorous in the campaign," he said during his campaign trail in Taman Mahsuri here today.
The MIC central working committee member reiterated that PH should make way for BN in the Padang Serai polls as he had been working in the constituency in the past three years.
"I know the voters here. If we talk about who has the better chance of winning, I believe I have better prospects compared to the other party."
Sivaraj said he was leaving the matter of his candidacy to the BN leadership and hoped they would consult him before deciding.
Yesterday, Parti Amanah Negara, a component party of PH, announced it would give way to BN in the Tioman state seat election due to the coalitions' cooperation in the Pahang government and at the federal level.
Meanwhile, Sofee acknowledged that PH would face an uphill battle in Padang Serai if BN remained in the race.
However, he said PH had an advantage due to the sterling services of the late former member of parliament M. Karupaiya in the constituency.
"It will be an enormous responsibility for me to ensure PH keeps the seat. We hope the understanding reached between PH and BN in Tioman will be replicated here in Padang Serai.
"But if a clash between PH and BN is inevitable here, we will have to work harder to ensure PH wins," he said after a ceramah here yesterday evening.
Sofee previously expressed hope that BN would make way for him to have a straight fight with PN in the Padang Serai parliamentary election on Dec 7.
But Sivaraj shot down the idea as Sofee was a new face in Padang Serai.
