GEORGE TOWN – PKR secretary-general Datuk Saifuddin Nasution Ismail has taken Rafizi Ramli to task for claiming that it was he who offered Saifuddin his current party post, ahead of their clash for the deputy president’s seat next month.
Saifuddin, who is now Kulim-Bandar Baharu MP, said Rafizi may have been misinformed if he thought that it was due to him that Saifuddin assumed his post in 2016 and also got appointed as an aide in the Penang chief minister’s office in 2017.
“Neither did Rafizi play a role in me becoming a special aide to the then chief minister of Penang, Lim Guan Eng,” said Saifuddin today.
He also dismissed Rafizi’s claims that he was jobless in 2013 after losing the race for the Kulim-Bandar Baharu seat in the general election that year. Saifuddin won the seat in the 2018 polls.
“I am (also) not sure what working paper Rafizi is referring to that gave me a position in Penang.
From what I remember most, he never had a good relationship with Lim, let alone could propose my appointment as an adviser to the Penang government,” Saifuddin said in a statement.
Saifuddin added that the position of secretary-general was offered to him by then PKR president Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail because Rafizi was preoccupied with court cases, and needed time and space to fight his legal battles.
He said that he was compelled to correct such misperceptions now, ahead of the party’s upcoming election where he is pitted against Rafizi.
Yesterday, Rafizi, who is now PKR vice-president, had spoken at length on the campaign trail in Penang of his sacrifices. He claimed that he had helped Saifuddin who allegedly informed him that he had been “jobless” after being defeated in the 2013 election.
Rafizi claimed that he made way for Saifuddin to become secretary-general and had come up with a working paper for the Penang government to appoint the latter as a strategic adviser.
Saifuddin Nasution said that he had previously held the post of secretary-general in 2010 when he replaced Datuk Salahuddin Hashim.
“To supplement my income, I went to Jakarta every week to meet my commitments as a lecturer with a few civil society movements and educational institutions there,” he said.
“The wages were not much but enough for the household needs of my wife and five children. I did not reside in Jakarta.”
In 2014, Rafizi won the PKR vice-president’s post and he was subsequently appointed as the secretary-general.
But in 2016, he was saddled with many legal cases and after discussions between him and Wan Azizah, Saifuddin was reappointed as secretary-general in November of that year.
At the same time, Lim felt that he needed help on Malay issues in Penang, and invited Saifuddin to serve in the state government here where he was accorded the post of strategic adviser.
“I consider Rafizi’s attempt to explain his leave from the party as a good effort. I do not want to prolong this debate and I am confident we can close ranks after the party election,” Saifuddin said.
He expressed hope that he and Rafizi can, after the party polls, work together to prepare the party for the next general election.
Speaking at a gathering organised by PKR’s Bayan Baru division yesterday, Rafizi had also said that, despite the criticisms against him, he remains friendly with Saifuddin and expects the upcoming party election to be orderly.
“It is unlike during (Datuk Seri) Azmin (Ali)’s tenure, as he was intent on betraying the party.”
The former Pandan MP, who is contesting for the deputy president’s seat, was visiting PKR members in Kedah and Penang over the weekend.
On his brash character which some quarters claim makes him a difficult leader to deal with, Rafizi said that it is his nature, but it does not mean he is not a team player.
“Even PKR president (Datuk Seri) Anwar (Ibrahim) had warned me about my brazen style many years ago, saying that there are times to be more reserved,” he said.
“But I am a straight arrow. If it is wrong, it is. There is no middle ground for an offence.”
However, Rafizi added that his style can be accepted if he adjusts and tries harder to communicate effectively to others about his well-meant intentions.
The PKR polls are scheduled to take place from May 13 to 22. – The Vibes, April 24, 2022
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