Padang Rengas MP Nazri Abdul Aziz says he will campaign for PKR president-elect Anwar Ibrahim in the coming Port Dickson by-election.

"I'm serious," he told Malaysiakini when asked if he was joking.

Asked why he wanted to campaign for Anwar, Nazri said it is what is best for Umno in order for the party to get back into government.

"I don't foresee Umno being in government in the near future but there is some common thinking among Umno MPs that we should come back into government as early as possible.

"The only way to do that is to work with PKR [...] so we should show some goodwill [...] if we want to form the government, let Anwar win," he said.

Nazri also rebutted Umno deputy president Mohamad Hasan who said the party would fight to the death against Anwar in Port Dickson.

Nazri, the former tourism minister, opined this was not an Umno decision and that Mohamad was "not an MP and does not know what we MPs are planning."

He also said that Umno could not win the seat and thus should let PKR carry out its plan to change the seat's MPs.

He added he would still campaign for Anwar even if Umno contested the seat as he wanted to do what was "best for Umno, not for individual interests."

"I will still campaign for Anwar but this is still speculative (that Umno will contest)," he said.

He also said he was prepared to face disciplinary action for his stance.

'We should be like Razak'

Nazri said PKR was the party that the people wanted in power as evident by the past three by-elections.

"There have been three by-elections. MCA, PAS and Umno lost badly, the people did not budge and still rejected those who fought against PKR (and Pakatan Harapan).

"So you have to be close to the people and they want to give PKR a chance.

He also said that forming coalitions was not strange and that this was what the second prime minister Abdul Razak Hussein did when he transformed the Alliance into BN and offered to bring all opposition parties into the fold.

"Razak was a wise, courageous leader. We should be like him," he said.

The Port Dickson by-election was triggered when its MP Danyal Balagopal Abdullah vacated his seat yesterday.

The move is meant to facilitate the start of Anwar's return to the federal government.