EXCLUSIVE This was her maiden media interview, conducted 48 hours after Anwar Ibrahim’s conviction and sentencing. It was the second time Nurul Nuha had seen her father being led to prison, once as a teenager and now as a mother of two.

As expected, it was an emotionally-charged meeting, with tears flowing freely.

But there was one significant difference. Unlike her previous experience, where Nurul Nuha had to watch haplessly as the events unraveled, this time around, she is determined to make a stand.

Asked if she is prepared to undertake such a battle, she replied: "One has to be ready. Ready or not, I am here."

"When someone you love is taken away from you twice. (And) I might add, unjustly, can you just sit and do nothing?"

When Malaysiakini met her at the family residence in Bukit Segambut, her three-year-old son refused to leave her side and slotted his small frame next to her on the same chair.

Her husband pried him away and Nurul Nuha sighed at the sound of the boy and his younger brother wailing outside the room.

She then apologised for not being professional.

Having signed up as a PKR life-member in 2008, the 31-year-old graphic designer graduated from the George Mason University in Virginia, United States, and is married to a MAS pilot.

While her elder sister Nurul Izzah is well-known given that she is a MP and PKR vice-president, little is known about Nurul Nuha, who is now the face of the newly-launched March 2 Freedom movement to secure Anwar’s release.

Initially, she broke into tears whenever her father’s name was mentioned but soon regained her composure.

'Destroyed and devastated, I had to come back'

Nurul Nuha revealed how she had first thought of staying a bit longer in the US but then felt compelled to return when the allegations against her father surfaced.

"I stayed on in US for a while (after studies) until the Sodomy 2 allegations came up. I  was destroyed, devastated. I had to come back and be by my family, I had to fight the cause," she said.

Her affection for both Anwar and her mother Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, with whom she bears a striking resemblance to, was apparent from the warmth in her eyes when she spoke of them.

"I share living values instilled in me by my wonderful parents. I love them to death. They made me who I am today," she said.

She also refused to point fingers at anyone for her father’s predicament, saying, "Blaming is not good for your heart. It will get you nowhere, the blame game will go on forever."

However, she did not deny feeling angry and sad.

"It's an amalgamation of both. I'm sad because my father was taken away from us. I'm angry because my hope for a better Malaysia has been trashed down the drain, when you look at the judiciary.

"I'm a mother now, and I'm thinking of the kind of Malaysia my kids will grow up in," she said.

Nurul Nuha also wanted her father to know that the family would never give up on him.

"I want to tell him that we miss him very much. We will always have his back. He need not worry, we will continue fighting for him," she said amid sobs.

She also disclosed that both Wan Azizah and her had remained optimistic about the Federal Court verdict and there was a sense of "normalcy" in the house.

"I had no prior knowledge of the verdict and we were shocked (when he was convicted). He was not any different. He's not any different now either. He's still the same Anwar," she said.

Following Anwar’s imprisonment, Nurul Nuha described the feeling at the family home as being "sombre".

"His grandkids miss him a lot. My children managed to say goodbye to him, but others (Nurul Izzah's children) didn't manage to as the court was in session when they came," she said.

Again, in between tears, she described the family's last lunch with Anwar after the verdict.

"None of us could eat. My son finished his food though. Then we all hugged, hoping this would not be the last hug, but unfortunately it was (for now)," she narrated.

Part 1 Nuha: We're not seeking VIP treatment for dad

The third and final part of the interview will be published tomorrow.