H-Net* Chandra to stand against Tan

[Concorde]

Tuesday, November 16, 1999 Chandra to stand against Tan By K. Parkaran and Sim Leoi Leoi KUALA LUMPUR: Parti Keadilan Nasional deputy president Dr Chandra Muzaffar will contest the Bandar Tun Razak parliamentary seat in the general election, setting up an interesting clash with MCA Federal Territory chief Datuk Tan Chai Ho. Sources said that the founding member of Aliran was earlier said to be considering the Bayan Baru seat in Penang but decided to stand in the Federal Territory as the party felt his services were needed at national level. "We have decided that our members of parliament and assemblymen must be around constituencies where they will be able to serve the electorate effectively. "As such, the party felt that Dr Chandra, being a federal leader, needs to be in Kuala Lumpur. So, we decided to let him contest in Bandar Tun Razak which is a seat with a fair racial mix," said one source. The constituency, which incumbent Tan won in 1995, has 59,416 voters where Malays make up 52.5% of the electorate, Chinese 39.6%, Indians 7.06% and others 0.85%. An Aliran member said a team of its members would come down to help the Barisan Alterntif wrest the seat from Barisan. However, Dr Chandra said the party had not finalised its list of candidates for the state and parliamentary seats. "I don't know for certain where I will be contesting. The final decision will be made in the next few days," he said last night. Tan, who is parliamentary secretary to the Domestic Trade and Consumers Affairs Ministry, expressed confidence retaining the seat for a second term. "I have heard rumours that Dr Chandra will stand here. Before this, it was Keadilan president Datin Seri Wan Azizah. "These rumours are unconfirmed but I welcome any challenge," he said, adding that his track record as MP was there for the voters to see.