PKR secretary-general Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said today that he will be announcing which parliamentary seat Anwar Ibrahim will be contesting tomorrow at PKR’s headquarters.
He said Anwar would also be present at the press conference to make the announcement.
"At 11am tomorrow I will be issuing a press alert on the announcement,” he told reporters after visiting the families of victims of the bridge collapse incident in Taman Serdang, Bandar Baharu in Kulim, Kedah.
However, Saifuddin said the seat was not Pandan which is held by Anwar’s wife Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, who is also Deputy Prime Minister.
In Seremban, Negeri Sembilan Menteri Besar and state PKR chief Aminuddin Harun said he had no knowledge that Anwar would be contesting the Port Dickson seat.
"I did not receive any information, so how did you media get the information?," he said when asked by Bernama about it.
An English daily today had speculated that Anwar (photo) will be contesting that seat which is held by Danyal Balagopal Abdullah, who is PKR’s sole MP in Negeri Sembilan.
In Kuantan, PKR vice-president Fuziah Salleh, who is also Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department and MP for Kuantan, when met by reporters at the Pahang-level Maal Hijrah celebration, said that she would be more than willing to give up her seat for Anwar.
In Batu Kawan, PKR Wanita chief Zuraida Kamarudin proposed that the party hold an official top leadership meeting to discuss which parliamentary seat should be vacated for Anwar.
Speaking to reporters after a working visit to the Penang Fire and Rescue Department in Batu Kawan, the Housing and Local Government Minister said the decision on the matter should not be made by just a select few.
She was commenting on a statement by PKR vice-president Tian Chua, who expressed his disappointment with fellow vice-president Rafizi Ramli for sidelining him in discussions over the choice of seat for Anwar.
The issue of which seat Anwar will be contesting has been hogging the headlines the past few days. The prime minister-in-waiting has to win a by-election in order to take over the prime minister’s post from Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
It is understood that before the 14th general election, the partners in Pakatan Harapan (Bersatu, DAP, PKR and Amanah) had agreed that should they win the election, Dr Mahathir would be at the helm for about two years before handing over the reins to Anwar.
- Bernama
