Umno is leading Nenggiri polls campaign as it knows better: Rafizi

Umno is leading the Nenggiri by-election campaign as it is more familiar with the Gua Musang and Nenggiri areas, PKR deputy president Rafizi Ramli said.

Rafizi said it would be more effective for Umno to lead while he focuses on his responsibilities as the economy minister.

“Our approach is to complement each other. In some constituencies, our allies have a stronger presence, so I think it’s best to let them take charge.

“Given the situation, I believe the best strategy is to let Umno lead the campaign because they understand the local terrain better than anyone in PKR or even Pakatan Harapan,” he explained.

He added that he had never joined other campaigns besides PKR’s.

Ready to help

The Pandan MP elaborated that with Umno leading the by-election campaign, he could concentrate more on economic reforms, such as the progressive wage initiative and other critical issues.

“This approach allows me to contribute to the campaign by ensuring that government policies and performance are running smoothly,” he added.

On July 19, Harapan communications director Fahmi Fadzil said the coalition machinery is ready to help campaign for the BN candidate in the Nenggiri by-election.

The by-election will be held on Aug 17. BN’s Mohd Azmawi Fikri Abdul Ghani and Perikatan Nasional’s Mohd Rizwadi Ismail will face off against each other.

There are 20,259 eligible voters, including 14 police officers, but no early voting.

The Nenggiri by-election is being called after the Kelantan assembly speaker was informed that its representative, Mohd Azizi Abu Naim, had ceased to be a member of Bersatu on June 13.

BN won the Nenggiri seat for four consecutive elections since 2004 before losing it to PN in last year’s state election, when Azizi defeated Umno’s Ab Aziz Yussof with a majority of 810 votes.

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