PKR deputy presidency contender Zaid Ibrahim has pledged to be the loyal deputy of party president Dr Wan Azizah Ismail, should he be elected in the upcoming party polls.

“If I win, I will defend the president’s power,” said Zaid in a posting on his blog today.

NONE Zaid ( left ) said that the party president cannot be merely treated as a symbol while all authority is vested upon de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim.        

“Too often do I hear that Wan Azizah is not the real leader. Some say she has no power. This happens because some party leaders don’t respect the position of party president.

“(Some of these) leaders are more comfortable giving their full trust in the de facto leader. I, too, trust and fully support Anwar, because he is the party founder and opposition leader.    

“But in the party structure, he is just an ordinary member,” said Zaid.

He vowed to help Wan Azizah continue to strengthen the party’s reformist policies.

Zaid said that the president requires a loyal deputy who will “balance or complement” the power of the president to help improve the party’s performance and image.

pkr supreme council meeting 0404010 wan azizah “The party president cannot be treated as just a symbol. If PKR does not respect the legitimate president, because we are content with a president who is just a symbol (although she is fully empowered by the party constitution), what guarantee is there that we will respect the party constitution when we take power?” he asked.

Zaid appears to be appealing to party members to reject his main opponent Azmin Ali, on the basis that he would make a bad pairing with Wan Azizah ( right ).

Rumours of Wan Azizah’s low regard for Azmin have been persisting for years and this was amplified by the recent endorsement of Zaid by her daughter Nurul Izzah, who is an influential young party leader.

Grateful for nominations         

Meanwhile, Zaid also thanked the numerous PKR divisions in various parts of the country for nominating him for the deputy presidency over the weekend.

The former law minister had received 14 nominations by the time 68 divisions completed their AGMs yesterday evening.

“Some divisions that I have never visited such as Padang Rengas, Tampin, Jerantut and others, also nominated me. I thank them for their confidence in me.

“After this, I will go throughout the country to meet party members. I will explain to them several key issues during these meetings,” he said.

Party members will vote for 26 supreme council members beginning Oct 29.