Tenang rocked!

How do you attract the crowd to listen to ceramah, held every night since nomination day last Saturday?
Bring in the element of entertainment!
And that's what Barisan Nasional did on Friday night. At Dataran Labis where Explorasi Belia 1Malaysia Carnival is being held, a concert comprising Chinese artistes drew a full capacity crowd.
They came in droves, braving the drizzle to Dataran Labis.
Over in Taman Tenang Station, National MIC Youth held a concert for the mainly Indian community, intersperse with speeches by politicians, among them Health Minister, Datuk Liow Tiong Lai and Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein.
A restaurant operator said the by-election brings the crowd to her outlet. Next to her restaurant is DAP's operation centre which holds ceramahs regularly.
A few kilometres away in Tenang Station town, Pakatan Rakyat held a ceramah, in a sombre note. Pas candidate Normala Sudirman was present.

Sexy dancers on stage

Hoping for sunshine on Sunday

Traders plying at Dataran Labis for the Karnival Explorasi Belia 1Malaysia are in a pensive mood.
Heavy rain which hit Segamat and Labis since Tuesday has turned away visitors. Visitors are turned off by the soggy pitch and traders are contemplating giving up half way.
But they have signed an agreement with the organiser to pay RM2,000 in rental.
To compound matters, government agencies holding exhibitions at the square caused the stalls to be hidden from view.
One of them said his goods were destroyed when about four inches of water filled his stall at the height of the flash flood.
Several ceramahs organised by both BN and PAS were also affected.

Both camps are praying hard for the sun to come out of hiding on Sunday to draw more voters out. 

Flies as lunch companion

Politics aside, let's talk about Malaysian's favourite pastime. Yes, food!
It was a shock for this writer when he stopped over for lunch at a foodstall in Bukit Kepong. For half a plate of rice, asam pedas and a pinch of vegetables, he was charged RM7.
And that's not the shocking part. His left hand was constantly waving in the air, not to greet the villagers, but to chase away flies, coming in droves all over the stall.
Surprisingly though, the other customers were enjoying their lunch, oblivious to the flies on the table, and in  the plate.
The stall owner was nonchalant when asked about the pesky beings. "Don't know where they come from, although there is a chicken farm nearby.
"Other places have chicken farms too but I don't think there are as many flies as here."
Traders in the normally quiet Labis do not seem to be interested in cashing in on the hordes of outsiders thronging the town.
Many food outlets are closed during the day.
Johor delicacies like asam pedas are a must at all outlets. There is one stall by the roadside along the road to Segamat offering Nasi Beriani Gam Batu Pahat.
But come a little later and you will find your favourite mutton out of stock.
And oh, there is a KFC outlet in town too.

Smooth nomination process

It was a smooth nomination process with no untowards incident. Supporters of both BN and Pas behaved themselves as they stood their ground rooting for their respective candidates.
Police closed the main road leading to Segamat but traffic was smooth.
All I had to do was to wave my ID tag to get through and had a convenient parking space near the Labis district office where the nomination process was held.
An air of festivity at both sides of the camps was felt and despite leaving a trail of rubbish, they dispersed peacefully after nomination papers of both candidates were accepted and announced.
The serenity of Labis town was shattered with hordes of cars, bearing registration numbers of different states inched their way out.
And with the announcement, the battle has begun for the state seat left vacant following the death of its incumbent Datuk Sulaiman Taha.
Several ceramahs were held by the bigwigs of both contesting parties.
Datuk Seri Zahid Hamidi held court at Felda Tenang while  Pas president Datuk Seri Hadi Awang went to Felda Chemplak.
Apart from that, small ceramahs were held everywhere.

Footnote: BN is represented by Mohd Azahar Ibrahim while Pas candidate is Normala Sudirman

Not a good start

Arrived in Labis at 3pm on Friday after making a stopover in Bukit Kepong. Thank God I made the stop. Found out that a relative is staying in Labis.
The (only) hotel in town sucks big time. I decided to put up at a relative's house in Taman Perling after making a visit to Fu Fa Hotel. Really don't want to talk about it.
NST rented a semi-D house nearby as its operation centre and I spent some time at the makeshift office before retiring early in anticipation of the big day on Jan 22.
The Tenang nomination is expected to be smooth this morning but was told major roads in town will be closed to facilitate the process.
Hope to make a walk-about in town later.

Tenang revisited

It was in 1995 and I was practising a dance step for a musical when assistant news editor Lee Boon Siew barged into the room, calling me to one side.
Apparently, a man was swallowed by a python in a remote place near Segamat and he wanted me to interview the grieving family.
Lionel Morais was also roped in and we were told to leave the same night and come back as soon as possible to make it to the front page of The Malay Mail the next day.
That was my first encounter with a place called Tenang. I returned to the place daily for the next nine days for a full coverage of the incident.
Now, 16 years after, I am returning to Tenang, this time to cover by-election, to be held following the death of its incumbent state assemblyman Datuk Sulaiman Taha.
Can't wait to explore the constituency