Pulai’s Perikatan candidate says won’t promise ‘the moon and the stars’ but will prioritise economic balance

JOHOR BARU, Aug 29 — Perikatan Nasional’s (PN) Pulai parliamentary hopeful Zulkifli Jaafar said he will promote the importance of economic balance as a central theme throughout his campaign period.

He said economic balance needs to be restored as it will lead to the general well-being of the people.

“Among the problems that I often hear about is the high cost of living and the high prices of goods, usually brought on by inflation,” he said.

Zulkifli said the importance of achieving economic balance became the focus of his campaign after hearing the various issues raised by residents in the Pulai parliamentary constituency.

The 50-year-old entrepreneur explained that the people’s problems are interrelated and affects almost everyone.

“From there, we understand that the affected party will have a lower purchasing power due to escalating costs and this in turn is interconnected to the traders and suppliers who have lower sales.

“I don’t want to promise the moon and stars. However, if given the mandate, I know that restoring the economic balance will be my priority.

“If the economy can be balanced, the people’s well-being can be achieved,” he told reporters during a programme held at the Bukit Indah district polling centre (PDM) today.

Zulkifli is in a three-cornered contest with Pakatan Harapan’s (PH) Suhaizan Kayat and independent Samsudin Mohamad Fauzi for the Pulai parliamentary by-election.

Zulkifli said that he will highlight the importance of restoring economic balance to ensure the well-being of the people.

He added that it was an issue worth pursuing as it affects people from all walks of life.

“We will also try to highlight other issues that concern the local population, and try to look for the best solution,” he said.

As for how his campaign is progressing, Zulkifli said he is satisfied with the support received over the past four days.

However, he believes that he still has a long way and must put in more effort to gain the trust of the voters in the next 10 days.

“As of today, I have already visited 19 out of 40 district polling centres for the constituency.

“In Pulai, it is difficult to interpret the support shown by the voters, especially those from the Chinese community.

“So, the general approach I use throughout the campaign is to remind the constituents of their responsibility to vote on polling day,” said Zulkifli, adding that he expects a higher turnout for polling day compared to the previous general election in November last year.

The Pulai parliamentary and Simpang Jeram state by-elections were called following the death of its incumbent, Datuk Seri Salahuddin Ayub, on July 23.

Salahuddin, the Parti Amanah Negara (Amanah) deputy president, was 61. He was also the domestic trade and cost of living minister.

The Election Commission has set the polling date for both by-elections on September 9, with early voting is on September 5.