Will PKR be swept away?

The party of Reformasi and Anwar Ibrahim faces a hard slog ahead to remain relevant.

COMMENT

Constitutional law expert Abdul Aziz Bari was a boon to PKR when he joined the party some time ago. His statements to the media are often insightful, and his reasoning sound within the framework of his profession. Aziz was, without doubt, an asset in PKR’s toolbox and it was only a matter of time before he would become a linchpin of the party, which makes his defection to DAP all the more surprising.

One of those investigated in last year’s Sedition Act blitz for his comments regarding the Sultan of Selangor’s role in the selection of the Menteri Besar, Aziz has been something of a maverick within the intellectual community. Even before last year’s Selangor Menteri Besar crisis and his subsequent “seditious” comments, Aziz had landed himself in hot water in 2011 when comments he made about the Selangor Sultan caused him to be suspended from his position as a lecturer at the International Islamic University.

Knowledgable and outspoken, Aziz Bari represents the kind of voice PKR desperately needs right now. The party has been driven close to irrelevance in recent times, with the DAP leading the charge for the opposition. PKR seems immobilised at times, quite content to follow DAP’s leadership while occasionally emitting conciliatory noises towards PAS.

Add to all this the factional politics within PKR itself, and the leadership vacuum left by Anwar Ibrahim becomes obvious. Perhaps the most telling sign of PKR’s fall from the spotlight comes from Aziz’s exit statement. We will let the statement speak for itself: “I chose DAP because I feel that it provides ample room for me to serve. I was attracted by DAP’s principle of openness, meritocracy and transparency.”

DAP has been on a tear as it focuses on shedding its image as a “Chinese” party, which has paid off with high-profile additions to its membership like national laureate A Samad Said, and now Aziz.

As Aziz has pointed out, DAP is the strongest party within the opposition alliance in terms of state and parliamentary seats. He said he was confident in the party’s ability to get even further ahead.

A strong legal mind is definitely a gain for DAP and it should not take long for it to utilise such an acquisition. Aziz may soon see himself taking a significant role as the party shifts gears towards the next elections. In explaining his decision to join the party, Aziz said he believed that a two-party system would be the best way forward. Note that he did not say a “two-coalition” system. This could be taken to mean that GE14 will essentially be a confrontation between DAP and Umno.

So what now of PKR? Will it be swept away in DAP’s ambitious charge forward? Or will it get its act together and resolve its leadership problem to regain the glamour it once held as the party that began the revival of opposition politics?