The Petaling Jaya Residents Association has backed all but one of the Barisan Nasional candidates who will be contesting in constituencies within this suburb.

In a statement, association president S S Rajalingam called on residents to withhold support for incumbent Lim Thuan Seng, and instead to vote for DAP's John Chun in the Bukit Gasing state seat.

The main reason cited was Lim's alleged failure to stop the destruction of the Bukit Gasing green lung and inability to handle queries from residents during the series of briefings held last year on the PJ Draft Structure Plan.

Last October, the association conducted a 'Wakil Rakyat Performance Survey', covering attendance in Parliament and state assemblies, the questions and issues raised, frequency of visits to their constituencies, setting of up service centres, contributions to community development and ability to resolve major problems.

Based on the results, the association has endorsed the candidacy of BN parliamentary contestants - Donald Lim Siang Chai (PJ Selatan, left), Chew Mei Fun (PJ Utara, right) and Loh Seng Kok (Kelana Jaya).

Similar backing was given to BN candidates in state seats - Lee Hwa Beng (who won uncontested in Subang Jaya), Seripah Noli (a new face in Seri Setia), Abdul Wahab Ibrahim (Taman Aman), Wong Sai Hou (Kampung Tunku), Lim Choon Kim (Damansara Utama) and Mokhtar Ahamd Dahalan (Kota Damansara) - as well as DAP's Chung (Bukit Gasing).

Rajalingam said the call for support is "based on (incumbents') service performance and track record and for the first time contestants, on their commitment and ability to serve the residents effectively and efficiently".

"The support for the incumbents is also based on resources and facilities that would be available to the candidate to bring development and progress to the constituency," he said,

The candidates' record of support for programmes and activities of non-governmental organisations' has also been taken into consideration.

Wami's call

In another statement, the Writers' Alliance for Media Independence (Wami) called for the boycott of BN candidates selected from MCA, the second largest component party.

Wami represents former journalists and columnists of Nanyang Press Holdings who strongly protested the acquisition of Nanyang Siang Pau and China Press by MCA in May 2001, on grounds that this would lead to erosion of press freedom.

The issue had attracted widespread objections within the Chinese community and split MCA into two factions.

Two days after the takeover, more than 250 Chinese groups and organisations passed an emergency resolution calling on the party to respect the Chinese community's wishes and to withdraw the move. The call went unheeded.