Malaysia GE: Used to challenges, disabled candidate Noraishah takes on Putrajaya

Dr Noraishah Mydin, the Putrajaya candidate for the Pakatan Harapan alliance, speaking to voters on Nov 9, 2022. ST PHOTO: ARIFFIN JAMAR

KUALA LUMPUR - The odds may be stacked against Malaysia’s first female disabled election candidate Noraishah Mydin Abdul Aziz, who is taking on Umno stalwart Tengku Adnan Mansor in the Putrajaya ward, but she is no stranger to challenges.

Dr Noraishah, who was born with spina bifida and is wheelchair-bound, has had to fight to make her way in the world from when she was age 15 and denied the right to enrol in a residential school because of her disability.

Now 47, she is a scientist with a PhD in medical biotechnology from the University of London and a former senior lecturer at Universiti Malaya’s medical faculty.

Making her electoral debut in the Nov 19 polls for Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR), she said her top priorities are to be the voice for disenfranchised Malaysians and to address the socio-economic disparity.

“It’s completely pointless for me to be in Parliament if I cannot look after the weakest and the most disenfranchised of my society,” she told The Straits Times in an interview on Tuesday. “It is extremely nonsensical to discriminate against people based on their disabilities” she added.

But first, she has a big hurdle to clear. Not only will it be a six-cornered fight for the Putrajaya seat, where Malaysia’s administrative capital is located, she will have to beat the incumbent MP Tengku Adnan, who has held the seat since 2004 for the Barisan Nasional (BN) alliance.

Another heavyweight in her way is Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia’s vice-president and former education minister, Dr Radzi Jidin, who is part of the Perikatan Nasional coalition.

Dr Noraishah is made of sterner stuff and remains undaunted. And she does not mince her words.

“Barisan Nasional for 61 years is bad enough. They didn’t have any policies for people with birth defects. Perikatan Nasional should also be flushed down the toilet and be done with once and for all,” she told ST.

SPH Brightcove Video
Up until October, former Universiti of Malaya lecturer Dr Noraishah Mydin never thought she would play a role in Malaysia’s politics, let alone contest in the country’s general election. ST's Zunaira Saieed gets up close with the fiery candidate.

Umno is also tainted with corruption, when several of its leaders, including Tengku Adnan, were charged with graft after the PKR-led Pakatan Harapan coalition came into power in 2018. Tengku Adnan was later cleared of graft charges relating to receiving RM2 million (S$591,000) from a businessman back in 2016.

Against this, Dr Noraishah believes her moral principles will stand her in good stead at the ballot box. “When I am buried six feet under, I do not intend to give up the very being of who I am. I have held on to my principles with all my mind. I will speak out when things are not right,” she said.

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She also pledges to be actively engaged with her constituents should she bag Putrajaya for the Pakatan Harapan alliance.

“If the Malaysian people like me, vote me in, because I can only promise that I will work as hard as I can to look after the people who need to be looked after. If I make a mistake, you can bet your bottom dollar that I will apologise to you and I will seek you out. And I will want to know how to address the issue,” she added.

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