PRIME MINISTER Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has assumed direct political oversight of the Pandan parliamentary constituency following the departure of former PKR strongman Datuk Seri Rafizi Ramli from the party, in what is seen as a major effort to stabilise and rebuild the party machinery in Selangor.
PKR vice-president Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari announced that Pandan would now serve as Anwar’s adopted parliamentary constituency, while the Prime Minister’s senior political adviser, Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz, had been appointed as the party’s monitoring officer for the area.
The Selangor Menteri Besar said the move was part of a broader restructuring exercise involving the constituency’s service centre administration and party machinery.
“So, we have arranged for Tengku Zafrul to serve as the government’s representative and certainly the Prime Minister’s (Anwar’s) representative in the Pandan area,” he said during the Himpunan Setia Keadilan Pandan gathering last night.
Amirudin revealed that Tengku Zafrul’s appointment was made at Anwar’s own request, as the chairman of the Malaysian Investment Development Authority (MIDA) wanted to take on a more active political role in Selangor.
“We have also entrusted Tengku Zafrul with the responsibility of serving as the monitoring officer for the Ampang parliamentary constituency. However, the leadership in Ampang consists of party members (PKR), so I do not wish to interfere further. If anything happens in Ampang, Tengku Zafrul can oversee that as well,” he said.
The PKR leader stressed that despite the challenges arising from the departure of former senior party figures, the party’s operations and public services would continue uninterrupted.
“This is not something new. We have experienced this before in cases involving former PKR deputy president Datuk Seri Azmin Ali in Gombak and former vice-president Datuk Zuraida Kamaruddin in Ampang. That was what we did — we maintained the administration — and the result was that our victory margin in Ampang became even bigger compared with the previous election,” he said.
The announcement follows the resignation of Rafizi Ramli as Pandan MP and Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad as Setiawangsa MP, both of whom stepped down from their posts effective May 18 before formally leaving PKR the following day.
Speaking at the same event, Tengku Zafrul appealed for full cooperation from PKR leaders and grassroots members in both Pandan and Ampang to strengthen the party’s presence on the ground.
“I need advice and guidance from all my friends. I sincerely hope that all of you will join me in travelling throughout every corner of Ampang and Pandan, across every housing area and village,” he said.
The former finance minister also pledged to serve constituents regardless of race, religion or background.
“I may not be the best person, but God willing, I give my commitment that I will do my utmost to knock on every door of those in need of assistance, regardless of their background, religion or skin colour.” he added. - May 24, 2026
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