Local Chinese dailies today gave an extensive coverage on Selangor’s first village poll which saw Kg Bagan Pulau Ketam incumbent village chief Cha Keng Lee win the seat by 299 votes.
Cha received 749 votes, while his opponent Chua Chin Song only managed to gauge 450 votes.
In an immediate response, Cha pledged to fulfil his election promise to forge a peaceful and harmonious Pulau Ketam.
“Since villagers give me another opportunity to serve, I will make sure any decisions made in the future are in accordance with their wishes, and not an arbitrary one,” he told Sin Chew Daily yesterday.
He was announced winner by Klang District Officer Bakhtiar Husin at 5.45pm after the voting period ended at 4pm.
However, only one-third or 1221 voters out of 3628 registered voters cast their votes yesterday.
Alternative to indelible ink used
Selangor exco for new villages and illegal factories Ean Yong Hian Wah said it was the first time Malaysia has applied hanna, a paste made from hanna plant, in a electoral process to prevent multiple voting.
According to The Star, Henna plant is a small flowering shrub that was originally from Asia, Australia, and northern Africa; and mostly used to dye skin and create semi-permanent tattoos. 
The ink can last for two days before fading.
In another note, photos of the two candidates were pasted on ballot ticket for the convenience of illiterate voters.
Cha (right), a hotel operator in the island, was previously appointed as village chief by Selangor Government in 2008; while Chua is a fish distributor and a local PKR leader.
The result hence drew a close to the first two village polls introduced by the state, the third will be held in Pandamaran coming Sunday.
CJMY
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Jimmy Tan
