PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim is confident that his eldest daughter Nurul Izzah will be able to win the Lembah Pantai parliamentary seat.

lembah pantai nomination day 240208 hugs Nurul Izzah, 27, will be going up against incumbent Shahrizat Abdul Jalil ( left ) and independent candidate N Periasamy.

"She's a talented young girl and she understands the election process," said Anwar who accompanied his daughter to the nomination centre yesterday.

"She is not against any Umno candidates personally, but is fighting against the government," he added.

On his way to the nomination centre, Anwar was forced to walk through a large crowd of Barisan Nasional supporters to reach the PKR camp at the another end of the road about 100 meters away.

lembah pantai nomination day 240208 anwar Commenting on this, he said: "It was fine. I shook hands with Shahrizat. I never quarrel with Umno supporters, I only quarrel with corrupt leaders."

Anwar, who was the former Umno deputy president, said he would campaign for Nurul Izzah to ensure her victory.

Asked how he felt since both his wife Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail and his daughter are contesting in the March 8 polls, he replied: "I am more nervous now than when I was a candidate."

lembah pantai parliamentary seat election results 110208 Wan Azizah, who is also PKR president, will be defending the Permatang Pauh parliamentary seat in Penang.

Shahrizat confident

Meanwhile, Shahrizat is confident of retaining her seat based on her track-record. She also does not want to indulge in personal attacks against her rivals.

"I am one of BN leaders who have worked for the people. I don't want to do any personal attacks, I want to focus on what we're (BN) going to do and what we have done. It is not my style to smear other parties," she said.

Independent candidate Periasamy told Malaysiakini that he was a former MIC grassroots leader and quit politics in 2002.

The businessman said he decided to get back into politics because he wanted to change the mindset of the people, especially concerning the Internal Security Act (ISA).

lembah pantai nomination day 240208 periasamy independent Describing himself as a Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) sympathiser, Periasamy ( right ) said he has opted to contest in the general election rather than joining street protests to air his grouses.

With Nurul Izzah's entry, the Lembah Pantai has become a ‘must watch’ seat in the coming polls.

But she is facing an uphill task to dislodge Shahrizat, who is Women, Family and Community Development minister and Wanita Umno deputy chief.

lembah pantai nomination day 240208 3 candidates Shahrizat has previously beaten former lord president Salleh Abas, who ran under the Semangat 46 banner in 1995.

Four years later, she was victorious again against PKR candidate Zainur Zakaria, a high-profile lawyer.

The entry of an independent candidate in the contest may also draw some opposition votes from Nurul Izzah.

Watch 6-min video of nomination process in Lembah Pantai