SHAH ALAM, Nov 18 ― PKR’s Rafizi Ramli said today there is no need to prolong the party elections despite the many reported mishaps, as it would reflect badly on incoming president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
Rafizi, who lost against Datuk Seri Azmin Ali for the deputy president post, said he chose not to dispute the decision as this would allegedly draw criticism against Anwar’s ability to lead the party.
“Our party elections is the biggest one done in the country, involving 900,00 members with 140,00 voting. With so many people involve, there is bound to be shenanigans,” he told the 13th PKR National Congress at the Ideal Convention Centre here.
“There are criticisms from the outside and even within the party, that questioned Anwar Ibrahim's ability as the de facto leader and the incoming president to discipline the party.
“I made the decision not to prolong as I opined that after the party’s congress, we need to focus on making Anwar Ibrahim as the eighth prime minister,’’ he added, during his winding up speech as the outgoing vice-president.
Rafizi said he was disappointed by such criticisms, claiming they even came from senior leaders of the party.
“There are those who said that Anwar’s time is over, that it is time for someone new.
“It is alright for us to have a difference of opinion, but to have a difference of opinion to the extent that the party has been belittled and to have invited criticism of Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim as the candidate for the eighth prime minister, I urge them to stop,” he said.
Rafizi also reminded PKR members with government or ministerial positions to remember that the party won on an agenda centred on the economy, and to remain focused on defending the poor and the weak.
He then reiterated that the party needs to unite and focus on helping Anwar during his tenure as the eighth prime minister as he will inherit a government that is facing a challenging fiscal position against the backdrop of a global economic slowdown.
