The Permatang Pauh parliamentary seat in Penang has been the stronghold of former opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim for decades.
Following Anwar's conviction and disqualification, his wife and PKR president Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail won the seat in the 2015 by-election.
There is speculation that the couple's daughter and current Lembah Pantai MP Nurul Izzah might contest in Permatang Pauh in the coming national polls.
In an interview on Jan 18 with The Malaysian Insight, Wan Azizah, however, said as the incumbent, she would defend the seat.
Regardless of whether mother or daughter contests, Permatang Pauh Umno division chief Zaidi Mohd Said believes that conquering the seat is no longer an impossible feat.
According to him, the 14th general election provided the best opportunity to convince the people of Permatang Pauh to vote for change due to their growing disappointment.
“The issue of BN and Umno being incapable of seizing the seat from 'Anwar's Dynasty' no longer arises. Before this, all quarters, including BN, viewed Permatang Pauh as Anwar's impregnable fortress.
“Since taking over the Permatang Pauh Umno leadership in 2013, I set the target of changing the perception of the people in Permatang Pauh,” he told Umno Online.
Zaidi claimed that Anwar had only served the constituency well when he was with Umno but later abandoned his duties and responsibilities.
Citing the lack of allocation and development, he said the people of Permatang Pauh must be made to realise the importance of having an elected representative from BN.
“I am championing change for the children of our race. I believe everyone knows that Permatang Pauh is the only parliament constituency in Seberang Perai Tengah which does not have a full boarding school or religious boarding school.
“...To realise this aim, the people of Permatang Pauh must support the BN struggle in GE14.
“We have mobilised our election machinery. I am confident there can be a drastic change and we believe we can prove our capability in making a change in GE14,” he added.
Meanwhile, Penang PAS commissioner Muhammad Fauzi Yusof confirmed that the Islamist party would field a candidate for the Permatang Pauh seat.
He was reported to have said that the decision was made based on the opinion that Permatang Pauh was once a PAS stronghold before the seat was loaned to PKR.
PAS and PKR were once allies in the now-defunct Pakatan Rakyat.
In the 2015 by-election, Wan Azizah won Permatang Pauh with an 8,841-vote majority.
