A noted neurosurgeon, Dr Halili Rahmat, is fast emerging as PKR’s choice as candidate for the upcoming by-election in Hulu Selangor.

dr halili rahmat anwar doctor 130904 pc Born in Ulu Yam, he is known to be a close associate of PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim.

Halili ( right ) is currently the PKR Hulu Selangor division treasurer.

He has had two outings on the hustings, but with no success.

In 1999, he contested the Hulu Selangor parliamentary seat, but lost to MIC deputy president G Palanivel.

In 2004, he stood for the Batang Kali state seat, but lost to Umno’s Zainal Abidin Sakom by 8,828 votes.

However while Halili’s professional credentials are respectable enough, PKR’s Hulu Selangor division is also considering its vice-chief Razali Mokhtar as a candidate also.

Razali, born in Batang Kali, is an engineer in his 40s. He was the former general manager of Bumi Highway.

When contacted, a senior leader said the two names - and one more yet to be decided - will be submitted to the top leadership within two days.

The party is expected to discuss the candidacy at Wednesday’s political bureau meeting.

It had been earlier speculated that the candidate could likely be national-level leaders such as Youth chief Shamsul Iskandar Mohd Akin, Selangor PKR deputy chief Syed Shahir Syed Mohamud, who is also MTUC president and Pakatan Rakyat coordinator Zaid Ibrahim.

Choice of candidate

Several top party leaders refused to speculate about the various named being floated. 

PKR vice-president R Sivarasa ( below ) reiterated the party stance that the candidate selected will be the one with the best chance of winning.

NONE "The party will take into account various factors including his/her background, experience and qualifications; the demography of the voters; the particular characteristics of the constituency; views of coalition partners; and all other relevant factors.

"No one of these factors by itself determines who the candidate should be," he said when contacted.

The Hulu Selangor seat was made vacant due to the death of PKR's  Zainal Abidin Ahmad, 71. He succumbed to brain cancer on March 25.

This will be the 10th by-election since the 2008 general election, with Pakatan Rakyat having had the better of Barisan Nasional in the overall outcome.