AMPANG: Pakatan Harapan’s Lembah Jaya candidate, Syed Ahmad Syed Abdul Rahman Alhadad, intends on resolving “unfinished business” left behind by the constituency’s former elected representative, Haniza Talha.
Singer Syed Ahmad, whose stage name is Altimet, said he has been tying up loose ends for the past 10 months since being appointed as the coordinator for the area by the former Selangor state government.
He described Haniza as being akin to a broken pipe. “I was made a coordinator to act as a stand-in. But that broken pipe needs to be replaced with a new one, and God willing, I will play that role,” the rapper turned PKR politician told FMT.
Syed Ahmad will be up against Perikatan Nasional’s Sharifah Haslizah Syed Ariffin in a straight fight on Aug 12.
The seat was won by Haniza, then with PKR, with a 14,790 vote majority in the 2018 general election (GE14).
She was later expelled from the party after she joined a faction of other PKR leaders, including then deputy president Azmin Ali, in a gathering called the “Sheraton Move” which led to the collapse of the PH government in February 2020.
Syed Ahmad claimed that constituents here were unhappy with Haniza for being unable to resolve issues in Lembah Jaya. “And of late these complaints have resurfaced.”
When asked about his decision to throw his hat into the ring, Syed Ahmad said he had no qualms about offering himself as a candidate, despite the fact that other artistes who stood in the last general election had lost.
He said he was aware of the perception that entertainers were not serious when running in an election or that they did not care.
“Hopefully we can change this perception,” said Syed Ahmad, a self-described workaholic, who says he will be giving his 100% while on the campaign trail.
