KUALA LUMPUR: The new line-up in the PKR central leadership council as announced by Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim last night failed to reflect the party’s struggle to empower more leaders among women.
Adding to the growing calls for the PKR president to review the appointment, PKR Wanita chief Haniza Talha said the agenda to have greater women representation in the party’s leadership appears to be sidelined in the party central leadership council for the 2018-2021 term.
“Empowering women agenda is one important topic in the formation of new Malaysia, which has been deliberated and agreed to be implemented by the Pakatan Harapan government.
“The agenda, unfortunately, seems to have been sidelined by the Datuk Seri president in the appointment of the PKR leadership council, which lacks representation of women leaders.
“I am also agitated that the calls made by (PKR) deputy president (Datuk Seri Mohd Azmin Ali) was misunderstood by the Datuk Seri president, who thought the comment was purely personal,” she said in a statement today.
Haniza said she agreed with Azmin that the concept of fair and just representation including to have at least 30 per cent women in the party’s leadership was missing in the new PKR central leadership council.
“I appeal to the Datuk Seri president not to be biased and look into the calls made by all of us, who are PKR leaders, as a positive development in celebrating (the concept of) democracy.”