Melaka Polls: Ginie Lim To Focus On Equipping Youth With High-tech Skills

By Rashidah Abd Rahim

ALOR GAJAH, Nov 4 (Bernama) -- Pakatan Harapan (PH) candidate Datuk Ginie Lim Siew Lin aims to equip young people with high-tech skills as part of her priorities if elected to the Machap Jaya seat in the 16th Melaka state election.

Lim, 45, said she plans to work with government agencies and institutions to encourage more young people to pursue Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) programmes that meet industry needs.

The Wanita PKR information chief said Melaka has the potential to further develop as a high-tech industrial hub, making it crucial for young people to acquire the skills needed to seize job opportunities in the sector.

"About 20 per cent of voters in Machap Jaya are under 30, representing around 4,000 young people who could be trained for high-skilled jobs.

"I hope to raise awareness of these opportunities through career fairs and TVET programmes organised in collaboration with government institutions to help meet industry demand," she told Bernama during a walkabout in Bukit Bulat here today.

Lim, who is contesting the seat for the fourth time, also hopes to boost women's economic participation in the constituency and resolve several longstanding issues, particularly land matters affecting Felda settlers and small-scale farmers cultivating land near a dam.

“These include land ownership issues in Felda settlements, the Second Generation Housing Project (Gen-2) in Felda Hutan Percha and the status of land used by smallholders for farming.

"These issues require clear policies and solutions to protect residents' interests and safeguard the livelihoods of smallholders," she said.

On the first five days of campaigning, she said the response from local residents had been positive, although some had raised longstanding issues that remained unresolved, including those she had been unable to address during her previous term.

"I acknowledge that there were issues I could not resolve during my previous term. However, if given another mandate, I will do my best to address them with the support of the federal government, drawing on my experience in public administration and the corporate sector," she said.

Lim won the Machap Jaya seat in the 14th Melaka state election with a majority of 1,336 votes, defeating Barisan Nasional (BN) candidate Koh Nai Kwong and Wan Zahidi Wan Ismail of PAS.

In the 15th Melaka state election, BN's Datuk Ngwe Hee Sem won the seat with a majority of 938 votes, defeating Law Bing Haw (PH), Tai Siong Jiul (Perikatan Nasional), Abdul Aziz Abdul Kadir (Parti Perikatan India Muslim Nasional) and independent candidate Azlan Daud. Lim did not contest that election.

This time, the contest is three-cornered among Lim, Ngwe and Prasanth Kumar Brakasam of Bersama.

The Election Commission (EC) has set Nov 10 for early voting and Nov 14 for polling.

For the latest updates on the 16th Melaka state election, visit https://election.bernama.com/prn/melaka/2026/.

-- BERNAMA