ISKANDAR PUTERI — Economic survival, uncompetitive domestic wages, and an over-reliance on Singapore’s job market have emerged as the primary battleground issues for voters in the Skudai state constituency.
According to Pakatan Harapan (PH) candidate Kartiyaini Jeyapalan, young Johoreans strongly prefer to build their professional careers within their home state, but deep wage disparities continue to force hundreds of thousands to cross the border daily.
The Exhausting Reality of the Causeway Commute
Kartiyaini, who serves as the deputy chairman II of Johor Wanita DAP, warned that retaining local talent will remain a systemic challenge unless municipal and state administrations aggressively address stagnating entry-level salaries.
The economic proximity of Skudai—situated a mere 20km from the Johor Causeway—places the constituency at the absolute center of Malaysia’s regional brain drain. Recent labor statistics indicate that more than 1.18 million Malaysians are currently employed in Singapore, with approximately 400,000 of them enduring grueling daily border crossings just to earn a living.
“Young voters are opening up on the campaign trail about the relentless cost of living and a severe lack of high-value employment opportunities at home,” Kartiyaini, a lawyer by profession, stated. “They are deeply unhappy with the physical toll of commuting to Singapore every single day, but the currency exchange and salary packages across the border remain too attractive to ignore.”
She emphasized that this economic flight is no longer restricted to blue-collar workers. Young white-collar professionals, including corporate lawyers and medical doctors, are raising identical structural complaints, underscoring the urgent need for Johor to attract sophisticated foreign direct investment capable of matching global salary benchmarks.
Defending a Multi-Decade Stronghold
As the campaign enters its second week, Kartiyaini described voter reception as highly encouraging, noting that the electorate remains deeply familiar with DAP’s administrative track record in Skudai, a state seat the party has defended successfully since 2008.
However, retaining the constituency requires navigating a highly fragmented political environment. The election has drawn a competitive four-cornered fight. Kartiyaini is facing off against Barisan Nasional’s (BN) Tan Hiang Kee, Parti Sosialis Malaysia’s (PSM) Amir Syafiq Ameer Soekre, and Eugene Chua representing the youth-centric alternative, Parti Bersama Malaysia (Bersama).
Despite the multi-faction contest, Kartiyaini expressed confidence that the electorate trusts PH leaders to implement structural reforms necessary to stabilize local markets and build a sustainable economic framework for Johor’s younger generation.
