PETALING JAYA: With 10 candidates, Batu is one of the hottest contested parliamentary seats in GE15, but a lot of eyes seem to be on an influencer who goes by the moniker Cleopatra.
She is Nur Fathiah Syazwana Shaharuddin (pic), also known as Cleo and she is one of three women who has thrown her hat into the ring at Batu.
The others are independent candidate, activist Siti Kasim and Pejuang’s Wan Azliana Wan Adnan.
As a 28-year-old single mother of two young children, Nur Fathiah revealed on social media that she is also the breadwinner in her family.
Having graduated from the London Teacher Training College, United Kingdom, she is currently continuing her studies in the field of law, even as she plugs various things on the Internet.
The social media influencer shared that she has experience in the security and defence industry.
She is currently the director of Raffles Force (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, where she was appointed in 2021. In addition, she is also the chief executive officer and managing director of Nova Defense Sdn Bhd since 2019, a company she founded.
She said her accomplishments can be seen in the business field as she is an entrepreneurwho is often cited as a success story among those who are new in the field.
And despite her busy schedule and workload, Nur Fathiah has also found the time to set up a non-governmental organisation called Pertubuhan Tindakan Perikatan Wanita Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur, which is better known as Hetero Action Women Alliance (HAWA).
Nur Fathiah feels that the political field is the best platform for her to continue to defend the fate of the people in line with the tagline “Reset Batu”, which she often chants.
She said she was involved in politics to help improve the quality of education, economic activity, welfare, infrastructure, safety and well-being of the people of Batu.
In her manifesto posted on her Facebook page, the Penang-born candidate has pledged to serve her constituents diligently and in the most transparent manner possible, and strive to create more employment opportunities for locals to venture into businesses which will in turn open up more job opportunities.
She also pledged to create a drug-free society by having anti-drug campaigns and programmes.
“Give me the mandate to be your champion. We need an advocate from among the young. It is time for the young to rise and shine, in order to protect the future of the country.”
Batu is estimated to have 112,000 voters after taking into account 18-year-old voters and automatic registration, with the voter breakdown by race consisting of 43% Malay, with the Chinese (30%) and Indians (20%) making up the substantial ethnic groups.
Nur Fathiah will be up against established names such as Tian Chua (former MP turned independant), Datuk A. Kohilan Pillay (Barisan Nasional), Azhar Yahya (Perikatan Nasional) and the incumbent, P. Prabakaran (PKR).
