PETALING JAYA: PKR vice-president Nurul Izzah Anwar should lead the party in the 16th general election to reclaim parliamentary seats lost in the last nationwide polls, an MP said, comparing her to Benazir Bhutto and Megawati Soekarnoputri.
Hassan Karim said Nurul Izzah, the daughter of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, was both “capable and experienced”.
“She is charismatic and is ‘prime minister material’ like former Pakistan prime minister Benazir Bhutto and former Indonesian president Megawati Soekarnoputri,” the Pasir Gudang MP from PKR said in a Facebook post.
Hassan said PKR’s outing at the nationwide polls last year was unsatisfactory after losing 18 seats, including Permatang Pauh, a stronghold where Nurul Izzah served as the MP for a single term.
In the 14th general election, PKR secured 49 parliamentary seats.
He also said the party did not fare well in Selangor – considered a stronghold – with the PKR-led state failing to secure a two-thirds majority in the state election in August.
Last year, PKR lost Kuala Langat and Kapar, the two state constituencies considered to be safe seats, to Perikatan Nasional.
Hassan said PKR’s recent electoral performance meant that there was a need to prepare for the next general election early in order to come back stronger.
“If we do not come up with an effective strategy, there is a possibility that PKR will lose 50% of the seats, leaving us with only 15 seats.
“By then, do you think any political party will be willing to support Anwar as prime minister for a second term?” he said.
He urged his deputy president, Rafizi Ramli, and vice-president, Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad, to man up and contest in their home states of Terengganu and Kelantan, respectively.
