KUALA LUMPUR – The race for the Batu parliamentary constituency is off to a dramatic start with two of its candidates – former MP Chua Tian Chang and incumbent P. Prabakaran – trading barbs immediately after the nomination process here.
Chua, who will be contesting as an independent, warned that the decision to field his successor Prabakaran will risk opposition coalition Pakatan Harapan (PH) losing the seat.
Speaking to reporters after the nomination process at SMK Sentul Utama here, Chua said: “I stress again and again, if I didn’t offer such an option, there would have been the possibility this seat would fall to our opponent.”
When this proposition was put before Prabakaran, the 26-year-old retorted with: “Anwar doesn’t think so.”
Prabakaran added that his candidacy in Batu had received the blessing of PH chairman Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
“The chairman of PH, the president of PKR, put me here. Do you think the research is wrong? Tian Chua is the one who's wrong.”
Meanwhile, following reports that he was sacked from PKR for running as an independent, Chua said he “had already made the choice”, and that he accepts the decision of the party.
“He (Anwar) is duty-bound to act as the head of his party and I have to accept that.”
As for how his decision will affect his political career, Chua said his fate is in the hands of Batu voters.
“If my action is against their wishes, they can cast their vote to decide.”
Chua and Praba were among 10 names submitted to the Election Commission for candidacy in the Batu constituency. Of the 10, four including Chua are running as independents.
They are lawyer Siti Kasim, social media influencer Nur Fathiah Syazwana Shaharuddin, and chairman of Koperasi Grand Ages Kuala Lumpur Bhd, Datuk Seri Stanley Too Cheng Huat.
The other candidates are Zulkifli Fattah of Parti Rakyat Malaysia, Wan Azliana Wan Adnan of Pejuang, Azhar Yahya of Perikatan Nasional, Nathan Batu of Warisan, and Datuk A. Kohilan Pillay of Barisan Nasional. – The Vibes, November 5, 2022
