[UPDATED] GE15: Kasthuri Patto steps down to make way for young leaders

KUALA LUMPUR – Batu Kawan MP Kasthuri Patto will not be contesting in the 15th general election.

The two-term federal lawmaker from DAP called it the “hardest decision” she had ever made but was doing so to make way for future leaders.

“I will be forever indebted to the party for providing me a platform to serve people and nation for two terms as Batu Kawan MP,” she said in a statement.

She also stressed that she was not dropped as a candidate but that she was stepping down of her own accord.

“The (DAP) party leadership had persuaded me to rethink my decision but after much thought, I will stick to my decision,” Kasthuri, who is the daughter of the late P. Patto, a DAP strongman from the early 1970s, added. 

The 43-year-old said she will continue advocating for human rights issues and civil liberties, including fighting for the abolition of the death penalty, the criminalisation of underaged marriages, and to ensure social justice for all. 

Expressing her gratitude to DAP leaders, Kasthuri made special mention of party stalwarts Lim Kit Siang and the late Datuk Seri Karpal Singh, whom she said had been her “father figures” in politics. 

“It has been a true privilege to have served in my constituency under the DAP flag, and I wish the best to my beloved party and PH (Pakatan Harapan) (in steering) Malaysia to reach its full potential as a Malaysia for all Malaysians,” she said. 

Kasthuri had previously made her parliamentary debut in the 2013 general election, winning the Batu Kawan seat with a 25,962 majority before going on to defend the seat in the last national polls with a whopping 33,553 majority. 

Alongside being the current DAP international affairs deputy secretary, she is also president of the international network of legislators, Parliamentarians for Global Action, and part of the steering group for the International Panel of Parliamentarians for the Freedom of Religion and Belief. 

Prior to the dissolution of Parliament on October 10, she was also a member of the Parliamentary Special Select Committee on international affairs. – The Vibes, October 20, 2022