SHAH ALAM: The simmering feud among rival factions within the PKR leadership appears to have come to a boil, following the appointments of three new vice-presidents by party president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
PKR number two, Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali, today fired a salvo at the president, labeling the appointments as not reflecting the principles of fair and just representation towards the members’ aspirations.
He called on Anwar to review the appointments, adding that they will in no way help the party progress.
Anwar had on Friday night announced the appointments of new faces to the party’s central leadership council for the 2018-2021 term.
Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail was retained as PKR’s secretary-general, while Segamat MP Datuk Seri Dr Edmund R. Santhara Kumar has been appointed as his deputy.
However, the most controversial vice-president appointment was that of former Pandan member of parliament Rafizi Ramli.
Rafizi lost the deputy president’s race against Azmin during the recent PKR polls.
Azmin, who is Economic Affairs Minister, said the appointments, which were done after a hotly-contested party election, must take into account the views of the grassroots and done in the spirit of mutual respect in order to steer the party’s struggle back to its original path.
Without naming names, Azmin said several individuals which were appointed by Anwar were blame for the rift in the party. However, he appeared to take aim at Saifuddin Nasution.
“A few individuals named were directly responsible for an election process which lacked transparency and caused a rift within the party.
“The position of secretary-general is an important one which should be shouldered by someone who is professional and capable of understanding management and administrative duties.
“He needs to carry out his duties in line with the party’s decision which was done via a consensus, instead of taking a personal stand,” he said.
Azmin said the appointment of the PKR central leadership council should also be on merit and not as a “reward” or “political bribe” to gain votes within the council.
“As such, I will once again refer the matter to the president, who is aware of my stand as well as that of the majority of the elected council members
“I have informed my stand to the president several weeks ago. I urge the president to give serious attention for the sake of securing the party’s future.
“PKR’s reform idealism demands that we move with the strength of a solid organisation and celebrate various perspectives by drawing on the entirety of the strength of its members,” he said.
Apart from Rafizi, Saifuddin Nasution and Santhara Kumar, Anwar had, among others, also named Tanjung Malim MP Chang Lih Kang as one of the vice-presidents. Also included in the new line-up as vice-president was Saratok MP Ali Biju, who will represent the interest of Sarawak and Sabah.
The PKR elections, held from Oct to Nov, was riddled with drama and controversy. The polls, which featured an online voting system for the first time, also led to fights breaking out among rival factions.
The polls were also hit by claims of sabotage when a signal jammer was found at a polling centre.
Earlier this month, Anwar’s daughter, Permatang Pauh MP Nurul Izzah, pulled a shock move when she announced her decision to quit as party vice-president as well as all government posts.
Following her resignation, Anwar subsequently slammed a section of the party leadership, whom he said were more interested in playing politics than serve the people. He hinted that the disillusionment with the actions of these individuals could have also been behind Nurul Izzah’s resignation.
Her departure, Anwar had said, was an indictment of certain individuals within PKR’s leadership, “whose deceptive platitudes place individual greed above party unity.”
