Malaysian politician
Dr. Siti Mariah binti Mahmud (Jawi: سيتي مارية بنت محمود; born 14 February 1958) is a Malaysian politician, physician and lecturer who served as Member of the Selangor State Executive Council (EXCO) in the Pakatan Harapan (PH) state administration under Menteris Besar Azmin Ali and Amirudin Shari, Member of the Selangor State Legislative Assembly (MLA) for Seri Serdang from May 2018 to August 2023 as well as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Kota Raja from March 2008 to May 2018. She is a member and Vice President of the National Trust Party (AMANAH), a component party of the PH coalition and was a member of the Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS), a component party the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) coalition.
Education
She obtained Bachelor of Medicine (MBBS) from the Cairo University, Master of Physiology from University of London and Master of Business Management (MBA) from National University of Malaysia (UKM).
Early career
Before entering politics, Siti Mariah was a doctor and lecturer.
Political career
Siti Mariah was elected to Parliament in the 2008 Malaysian general election, gaining the seat of Kota Raja from the then-ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition.[1] It was reported that her victory—for the Islamist PAS—came with the support of ethnic Chinese and Indian voters.[2] She was successfully reelected again in the 2013 election but she did not seek a third term reelection for her Kota Raja parliamentary seat in the 2018 election to make way for Mohamad Sabu, the president of AMANAH. She contested and won the Selangor State Legislative Assembly constituency of Seri Serdang instead as AMANAH of PH candidate for the first time.
In 2005, Siti Mariah was the first female candidate for vice-president of PAS, but her candidacy was defeated.[3] She has subsequently been portrayed as representing the "new dynamic progressive voice" of PAS.[4]
Views
Disagree with Covid-19 vaccine mandate
Siti Mariah, who was a health executive councilor (exco) in Selangor, has expressed disagreement with the implementation of any vaccine mandate. Even though she advocates for vaccination, she does not believe a person should lose their job over it.[5]
Supporting the use of Ivermectin for Covid-19 treatment
Siti Mariah stirred up controversy when she suggested the use of Ivermectin, a drug generally authorized only for animals, to treat COVID-19. She tweeted about a couple who had recovered from COVID-19 after taking Ivermectin and claimed that there were no side effects. She also posed a question to the Health Director-General about what was wrong with taking this medicine.[6]
However, she later posted a follow-up tweet stating that she was neither pro nor against Ivermectin. She defended her stance by asking why those who are against it wanted to block it, and urged everyone to argue scientifically. Surprisingly, she was unaware of the Ivermectin trials being conducted by the Ministry of Health at the time.[6]
Personal life
She has six children.[4]
Election results
Parliament of Malaysia[1][7][8][9][10][11]
| Year
|
Constituency
|
Candidate
|
Votes
|
Pct
|
Opponent(s)
|
Votes
|
Pct
|
Ballots cast
|
Majority
|
Turnout
|
| 2004
|
P111 Kota Raja, Selangor
|
|
Siti Mariah Mahmud (PAS)
|
16,137
|
36.57%
|
|
Vigneswaran Sanasee (MIC)
|
24,376
|
55.24%
|
44,758
|
8,239
|
76.67%
|
|
|
Krisnasamy Thevarayan (IND)
|
3,608
|
8.18%
|
| 2008
|
|
Siti Mariah Mahmud (PAS)
|
38,630
|
68.36%
|
|
Vigneswaran Sanasee (MIC)
|
17,879
|
31.64%
|
57,323
|
20,751
|
79.74%
|
| 2013
|
|
Siti Mariah Mahmud (PAS)
|
59,106
|
64.51%
|
|
Murugesan Sinnandavar (MIC)
|
29,711
|
32.43%
|
92,719
|
29,395
|
87.55%
|
References
