The good doctor: Dr Mohd Mazri often receives request from voters to give them health examinations on his campaign trail.
MUAR: One wants to solve the health problems of Simpang Jeram folk, while the other wants to fix the local area’s flash floods.
These two, a doctor and an engineer, are candidates in the Simpang Jeram by-election, which is scheduled to take place on Sept 9.
Perikatan Nasional’s Dr Mohd Mazri Yahya, a vascular surgeon, cannot help but dish out health advice whenever he engages with voters on the campaign trail.
The 54-year-old also receives requests from locals to give them health examinations.
The Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia graduate uses the slogan “Biar doktor jaga Simpang Jeram” (Let a doctor take care of Simpang Jeram) as his campaign tagline.
“Most of the voters I have come across during my campaign trail and home visits so far suffer from diabetes, kidney problems and heart diseases.
“I noticed that many of them experienced swollen legs, which could be due to several issues such as those related to the kidneys, liver or heart.
“I met a man at a mosque in Sungai Abong on Tuesday, who asked me to examine his arms and legs because of the discomfort he felt,” he said.
Dr Mohd Mazri added that he would advise the people he met to not be afraid to visit the doctor for a more thorough checkup and to better monitor their health.
He is in a three-cornered fight for the Simpang Jeram state seat, which was left vacant following the death of assemblyman Datuk Seri Salahuddin Ayub last month.
There are 40,488 voters in Simpang Jeram, of which 21,005 (51.87%) are Malays, 18,052 (44.58%) are Chinese, 1,027 (2.53%) are Indians, and 404 (0.99%) are from other communities.
He is up against Pakatan Harapan’s Nazri Abdul Rahman, a 56-year-old engineer and independent candidate and aid worker S. Jeganathan.
Nazri, meanwhile, wants to use his 30-odd years of experience as a civil engineer to address floods and drainage issues in the constituency, which is next to Muar town.
The 56-year-old said his job at the Muar Municipal Council has given him an in-depth understanding of the flash floods that afflict Simpang Jeram.
“Some of the flood hotspots that I have identified while at the council include Taman Mulia in Sungai Abong and in front of the Muar Mara Junior Science College (MRSM) at Batu 6.
“That is why when I went on to pursue my PhD at Universiti Tun Hussein Onn, I decided to choose a topic related to floods – hydrology systems – for my research,” he said.
Two separate studies, by a private consultant and the Drainage and Irrigation Department, have been conducted on the Simpang Jeram floods.
“I hope my own research, coupled with the research from the other two parties, will allow us to resolve the area’s floods,” he said.
The by-election is one of two currently going on in Johor, with the other being the Pulai parliamentary seat near Johor Baru.
Voters in both seats will cast their votes on Sept 9.
