LEMBAH Pantai MP Fahmi Fadzil is perpetually at ease in front of the camera. His experience as a stage and film actor has certainly come in handy when dealing with the media and the public at large.
A son of career civil servants, his ethos is to serve.
And he serves a very interesting constituency, whose demographics are racially, economically and politically diverse.
Interestingly, Fahmi asserts that the dichotomy between the two most prominent areas under his watch – Pantai Dalam and Bangsar – no longer really exists.
The preconceived notions we may have about B40 Kampung Kerinchi within Pantai Dalam and about affluent Bangsar may not be entirely true.
Rapid urban development has changed the physical and social landscape of Kerinchi just as the pandemic has exposed how economically vulnerable some residents of Bangsar truly are.
After a term as Lembah Pantai MP, has he done enough for his constituency?
How does he balance the realities of serving his constituents on the ground with all their various grouses, and being an MP who debates on institutional reforms in Parliament?
Can the centre hold?
As the general election looms ahead, how is a splintered Pakatan Harapan (PH) strategising to go up against a seemingly more unified Barisan Nasional?
Surprisingly, he quotes WB Yeats: “Things fall apart, the centre cannot hold”.
Acknowledging the fragmented relations within the oppostion coalition, Fahmi however reminds us that the memorandum of understanding between PH and the administration under Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob has held up well.
Fahmi, who is PKR’s communications head, addresses apprehensions within PH towards bringing youth-based party Muda into the fold. He discusses the dwindling number of women candidates being fielded, and tackles the subject of moral assessment (by the religious department) for future political candidates.
On political integrity, he expresses respect and admiration for Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail as a stellar example.
Finally, the question on most of our minds. Does PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim still have a chance to become Malaysia’s next prime minister?
“We can only know how things will land once the dice is cast.”
The consummate politician, Fahmi answers these questions and more in his contemplative, roundabout way. – The Vibes, October 29, 2022
Presented by Petra News chief executive Datuk Zainul Arifin Mohamed Isa, executive director Datuk Ahirudin Attan (better known as Rocky Bru) and editor-in-chief Terence Fernandez
Produced by Shazmin Shamsuddin and sound engineered by Ethan Phoon
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