KUALA LUMPUR – With former party man Chua Tian Chang in the contest for Batu as an independent, PKR and Pakatan Harapan (PH) have been told to fight a good fight but to avoid personal attacks.
PKR deputy president Rafizi Ramli said the former Batu MP, who will be sacked from PKR for running against the party in the 15th general election (GE15), is welcomed to contest the seat he once held.
Rafizi said this should spur on PKR’s candidate, Batu incumbent P. Prabakaran, to work harder.
“Prabakaran should accept the contest with a good spirit and work hard as a youth and minority representative.
“I also advise the PKR and PH machinery in Batu to receive this contest with an open heart and to avoid personal attacks,” Rafizi told a press conference today after the closing of candidate nominations here, today.
Rafizi said Chua, better known as Tian Chua, had sent him a message last night informing him of his (Chua’s) decision to contest as an independent after PKR picked Prabakaran to defend the seat instead.
“Everyone has the right, and it is Tian Chua’s right to contest there…the more in Batu, the merrier.”
He also said he believed Chua also had the same objectives to bring reforms as PKR did, but was merely choosing a different path.
“He just wants to use a different way, but his commitment to reform is the same. The direction is still the same, isn’t it?” Rafizi added.
Chua, who was the former Batu MP from 2008 to 2018, returned today to contest in the parliamentary seat despite not getting nominated as a candidate by PKR.
The seat will see a 10-cornered fight that includes other independents such as prominent activist and lawyer Siti Kasim.
Chua and Prabakaran briefly traded barbs this morning when filing their candidate nominations.
Prabakaran had been a last-minute candidate in the 2018 general election after Chua’s candidacy was rejected by the Election Commission over a RM2,000 fine he paid for a conviction. Chua then endorsed Prabakaran as PKR’s candidate.
Earlier today, PKR president and PH chairman Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said Chua would be sacked for going against the party by running as an independent in Batu. – The Vibes, November 5, 2022
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