JELI: Come rain or shine, flood or no flood, the people of Pekan Lama in Ayer Lanas here will definitely go to the polling stations on March 8.

Having just experienced flash floods on Thursday evening, with some losing whole fields of crops, the villagers were still upbeat about voting.

Norhayati Mohd Nor, 49, said that while preparations would be made to brace for more floods, nothing would stop the villagers from voting.

"We must vote. Even if it floods, we'll take motorboats to get to the polling station."

Pekan Lama sits on one side of Sungai Pergau that overflowed after two days of continuous rain. The flood receded later that evening.

Another villager, Nirah Mat Hassan, 52, lost RM3,000 worth of corn when her 0.8ha field was flooded but said it did dampened her spirit to cast her vote.

"My crops go on a 40-day rotation. There was only 10 more days to go before it was ready to be sold but the floods struck," Nirah said.

Norhayati said the villagers would vote for Barisan Nasional and so would she because she wanted development and good education for her seven children.

"Tokpa (Datuk Mustapa Mohamad, Jeli's incumbent MP) has already helped us a lot. He looks into all our problems and provides solutions," she said.

Norhayati said the recent rains were "from heaven" and that meant that there would be a change in the state government.

When met at a separate function, Dr Azmi Setapa, the Barisan candidate for the Ayer Lanas state seat, said his Umno division had evacuated eight families from Pekan Lama to higher ground on Thursday but that they had returned after the flood receded.

?Should it rain on polling day, we will arrange transport for them," he said.

Kelantan Drainage and Irrigation Department director Lim Chow Hock said the floods had receded and that moderate rain was expected across the state in the next few days.