Upsetting Democrats in South a tough task

General News : Monday December 10, 2007

RACE TO PARLIAMENT

UNDERDOG STILL HAS SOME BITE

Upsetting Democrats in South a tough task

WASSANA NANUAM

Undeterred by the daily violence, Waemahadi Waeaoh keeps walking around the insurgency-plagued province of Narathiwat and knocking on doors asking for votes. A candidate for the Puea Pandin party, Dr Waemahadi is challenging Democrat heavyweights and hopes to win one seat in this Democrat stronghold.

The 45-year-old doctor-turned-politician believes his non-stop, door-to-door election campaign over the past three months will shake the loyalty voters have had for the Democrats and at least make them think while casting their votes on Dec 23.

His relentless efforts are viewed as a major factor in helping him win one of three seats from the Democrats in constituency 1, which covers seven districts, including Rueso and Si Sakhon where there is almost daily violence, according to observers.

Dr Waemahadi said he was frightened by both the southern insurgency and attacks from his political rivals.

One of his canvassers was shot dead while the other was injured while running his election campaign in the areas.

''I faced a bomb attack during a trip by car,'' said Dr Waemahadi. ''Luckily it was not a strong blast and it only injured my toes.''

He said he had the courage to go on and reach his aim of being elected.

He always raises his right thumb high when meeting people to show, as he has often said, ''my victory and unyielding will''.

His routine is getting out of bed at 3am daily to start his election campaign. He does not care about the threatening letters demanding he withdraw from the election and keeps handing out his party's policy leaflets to households until night.

''I sleep only three hours a day,'' he said, adding this has helped him manage to run two election campaigns in every district.

He believes 200,000 southerners who now work illegally in Malaysia will be his main supporters, as one of his policies is to acquire work permits for them.

Once he was accused of being a member of terrorist group Jemaah Islamiyah, but now Dr Waemahadi is presenting a new look. He promises voters a non-military approach to solving the southern unrest, including economic development and a minister selected from MPs in insurgency-torn provinces to direct the southern policies.

''I will also push for an amendment of the Internal Security Bill, which gives too much power to soldiers,'' said Dr Waemahadi.

The Puea Pandin party's southern policies are somewhat similar to those of the Democrats, and both agree to have a special minister overseeing the restive south as well as many solutions to the insurgency.

''We cannot solve only certain aspects of the problems, but a whole lot of them altogether,'' says Democrat candidate and deputy party spokesman Jeaming Tohtayong on the party's website.

Villagers need a better education and a better economy as immunity against the separatists, but on top of that, he added, they should have more roles in helping the government shape their future under the Democrat political platform ''People come first''.

Mr Jeaming and fellow Democrat Adul Sahibatu were former MPs in constituency 1. Observers says they will win again.

They do not run heavy election campaigns like Dr Waemahadi. The Democrat team appears calmer and less hasty. They say they have met villagers regularly for the past two years, listened to their troubles and told them the party's remedies.

''We don't only meet them at election time and then disappear,'' said Mr Jeaming.

By : Bangkok Post