BN's contender for Batu Gajah Ong Ka Chuan knows how to make political capital out of the Abdullah Ahmad Badawi pull factor.

At a dinner on Wednesday night, Ong garnished his speech with sprinklings taken from the conversations he claimed he had had with the prime minister and BN chief when he stopped over in Ipoh on Monday.

"After his speech at Indera Mulia the other day, the prime minister pulled me aside to ask: 'Ka Chuan, do you know a good place for vegetarian food?' I told him he had asked the right man, as not only am I a practising vegetarian, but I also know the perfect place."

With his entourage in tow, all of them headed for the restaurant. But on arrival, they hesitated at the doorstep. "They were wondering if the place was halal or not," said Ong.

"But (Abdullah) did no such thing. Without pause, he stepped right into the restaurant. His officers had no choice but to follow. And when the food arrived, (Abdullah) gamely tucked in.

So the rest too, did not ask any question and proceeded to do the same."

Ong paused and beamed at the crowd.

"Of course the restaurant is halal. It is vegetarian. But this just indicates the kind of moderate leader we have in the prime minister.

"He is not a leader who wraps himself up from head to toe and expects you to vote him in just because you wish for a ticket to heaven."

The mainly non-Malay crowd a mix of party stalwarts and businessmen clapped in appreciation of a story that cleverly managed to cover three issues close to the heart of most Malaysians: food, religion and race.

Backed by business

Ong, like most MCA candidates, prefers to conduct his lobbying in the midst of a more intimate crowd, as opposed to the opposition's large ceramah.

In the absence of food, it's anybody's guess if the MCA can attract the average man in the street to spend two hours listening to a political talk.

As the former state exco for infrastructure and public utilities, it is not surprising that much of his supporters at these dinners are from the construction and business communities.

With promises of new drains, new roads, and new highways, the BN has a strong case, especially in a constituency like Batu Gajah home to the lower income population.

Ong, who is also state MCA chief, is in the prime of his political career. Federal party leaders have so much faith in his capabilities that he has been given the unenviable task of taking back what the media calls Perak's opposition stronghold the only Perak parliament seat that MCA failed to conquer in 1999.

While it isn't entirely apt to describe Batu Gajah as an 'opposition stronghold' since DAP's Fong Po Kuan only took the seat by a slim 5.5 percent margin and both DAP and MCA each won a state seat under that parliamentary constituency Ong's battle is considered tough for having to go against an incumbent who is big on political personality, being the 'cili padi' that she is.

The elections have arrived

In her speeches, Fong says the people of Batu Gajah are the "luckiest in the world." In the run-up to the campaign period, she said, all the state's leaders have been coming to town with their cangkul in tow, ready to do bit of gotong royong .

"The state exco, comes into town, riding a bicycle. The state exco, comes into town, to play chess. The state exco, comes into town, to make shoes. The mayor, comes into town, to clean up the rubbish. The elections have arrived, they are starting to do their work," goes her 20-second opening, driving the crowd into rousing cheers.

The people of Batu Gajah should be "grateful for such a rare five-year phenomenon, that residents elsewhere don't get to see," laughs Fong.

On the side however, the Batu Gajah incumbent shakes her head when questioned about the health of her campaign as if to acknowledge the difficulties facing her to overcome MCA's advantages.

Ong argues equally that he does not have the lead in this game.

"The opposition charges that I abuse my power and take advantage of my younger brother's connections. If that was the case, I would have taken an easier seat. Why bother goading DAP, especially with Lim Kit Siang around, into such a tough fight?"

On the other hand, observers say Ong's campaign is aggressive enough to knock out Fong, and this is the bigger risk for DAP, than a defeat for national chairman Lim in the Ipoh Timor seat.

In 1999, DAP was shored up by younger candidates: Chow Kon Yeow in Tanjong, Chong Eng in Bukit Mertajam, Nga Kor Ming in Pantai Remis, and Teng Chang Kim in Bandar Klang, just to name a few.

Fong represents an entire new generation, and if she loses, DAP attempts at renewal will be in jeopardy.

BN cheerleaders

And while Ong presents a picture of modesty, Perak MCA in this election has the backing of a strong cheerleading team.

Ong's own brother Ka Ting was the first to get the ball rolling with allegations that DAP is still in bed with PAS an issue known to push Chinese voters towards the BN.

Then Abdullah came to town, Ling spoke up, and Gerakan head Lim Keng Yaik stopped in for a short market session yesterday morning.

And the latest big-wig on the cheerleading trail to Ipoh is ex-premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad, who will arrive today.

As though Kit Siang isn't big enough a draw, DAP too had pulled in its own names.

Karpal dropped into town last night for a three-in-a-row ceramah sprint, in attempts to bang home that oft-repeated 'No to Islamic state' argument. For the sake of variety, it was good that he wasn't the only speaker.

Last night, six DAP ceramah's were held simultaneously across Kinta Valley, with the party managing to coax out of political retirement names like Lau Dak Kee and Fan Yew Teng.

Not a numbers game

In Canning, a state seat under the hotly-contested Ipoh Timor parliamentary constituency, about 500 stood uncomfortably on the roadside shoulder to hear Fan, looking out of a bungalow, punched holes in Abdullah's anti-corruption drive.

The mixed crowd laughed and clapped as Fan reeled off on one story after another on ministers and former ministers who are still to be visited by the ACA.

The crowd size at DAP's spirited talks have grown since nomination night's event which drew at least 1,500 .

On Wednesday, DAP's mobile ceramah outside its tiny shophouse of an operations centre caused a minor traffic jam in the otherwise unhurried town of Ipoh.

Eyewitness say about 4,000 residents showed up, many forced to sit on the lawn of a roundabout across the street.

However, it is also true what MCA deputy president Chan Kong Choy has said: crowd size cannot be the only indicator. In spite of the large numbers to Kit Siang's ceramah in 1999, he lost.

But perhaps candidates from both sides should remember one thing about urban Chinese voting patterns. When the going is good for the ruling party, they lean towards the opposition, for a dash of check and balance.

And when the going is tough for BN, like in 1999, the votes went right into MCA's pockets.

Crucially also for Chan's consideration and he should know that this election is the first test for the Team A-Team B relationship.

At the federal level, it seems that MCA leaders are able to quietly put away their hatchets, but this is not apparent at the local level.