KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 1 ― Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail has called for a truce between PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and his deputy Datuk Seri Azmin Ali, after they locked horns on social media over the appointment of the party's central leadership council members.
“I think let the new president (Anwar) lead the party, too. We have actually chosen him, and as he (Azmin) said, it is the prerogative of the president, as well as for the unity factor in the party,” she told reporters last night when asked if it was proper for Azmin to have gone public with his disagreement with Anwar’s choices.
Dr Wan Azizah added that there are other ways through which Azmin could express his disagreements to Anwar on certain issues.
Tensions arose between Azmin and Anwar after Anwar appointed several PKR leaders who are believed to be aligned to him to the council last week. They included newly appointed vice president Rafizi Ramli who had challenged Azmin for the deputy president’s post but lost in the party polls last November.
Asked what advice she had for Azmin, who is also the Economic Affairs Minister, Dr Wan Azizah said “...keep cool”.
The Pandan MP was talking to reporters after participating in an Islamic street preaching event, near Suria KLCC here.
On December 29, Anwar made a remark on Twitter that appeared to be hitting out at Azmin.
“If only some people focused more on growing the economy, and less on politicking,” Anwar tweeted.
His sharp rebuke came after Azmin called on his boss to review all appointments for key positions in the party.
Azmin lamented that the appointments did not reflect the principle of “fair and just representation” towards the aspiration of members and will not help the party to move forward.
Besides Rafizi, Anwar also named Tanjung Malim MP Chang Lih Kang and Saratok MP Ali Biju as vice-presidents on December 28.
This is on top of PKR’s current three elected vice-presidents Zuraida Kamaruddin, Dr Xavier Jayakumar and Chua Tian Chang, as Nurul Izzah Anwar who was also voted in had relinquished her vice-president post.
Anwar reappointed Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail as the party’s secretary-general, and named Segamat MP Datuk Seri Edmund R. Santhara Kumar as deputy secretary-general and Semambu assemblyman Lee Chean Chung as treasurer-general.
The other appointments included Setiawangsa MP Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad (supervising secretary), Nibong Tebal MP Datuk Mansor Othman (strategic director), and Lembah Pantai MP Fahmi Fadzil (communication director).
