KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 27 — Former MP Tawfik Ismail and lawyer-activist Siti Kasim, who plan to stand as independent candidates in the general election, said they are doing so to prove there can be integrity in politics and to uphold democratic principles, even as they realise they hold the disadvantage in winning the November 19 vote.

Both are members of a non-partisan group calling itself Gerak Independent that was formed to offer voters alternative candidates to established political parties.

Tawfik is the son of former deputy prime minister Tun Dr Ismail Abdul Rahman and has declared his intent to challenge Umno president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi in the latter's Bagan Datuk, Perak stronghold.

"It’s going to be a hard fight but we will have to see what the ground is like.

"I’m under no illusion about my chances but I will give it my best shot,” he told The Star in an interview published today.

He said his aim is to slash Ahmad Zahid's votes and bring back integrity and dignity into politics.

"These issues need to be laid out in the public, especially to the people of Bagan Datuk,” he was quoted saying.

Tawfik, who was MP for Sungai Benut (now known as Simpang Renggang) in Johor, said his friends have volunteered to help his electoral campaign.

Siti Kasim, who also is a member of GI, said she is unfazed at the prospect of facing a multi-corner fight for the Batu parliamentary seat in Kuala Lumpur.

"It is irrelevant how many candidates are standing for a parliamentary seat. It is a democracy and it is what it is,” Siti was quoted saying.

She said her decision to run in Batu was because it is the "most suited to our brand and it’s a well-balanced urban seat".

"I am realistic in my chances like everyone else who contends for a seat. My team and I are doing our very best to reach out to the electorate," she was quoted saying.

Batu is seen as a hot seat in the city and many have expressed their intention to stand there this general election.

It was won by college student Prabakaran Parameswaran as an independent in 2018 when he was only 22. He later joined PKR.

PKR's Chua Tian Chang who had won the city seat in 2008 and 2013 has expressed a desire to stand there again.

Another public figure who has expressed a similar intent is social media influencer Nur Fathiah Syazwana Shaharuddin, better known by her moniker "Cleopatra".