Selangor PAS has instructed its machinery in Pandan to prepare for a by-election as it believes the seat is most likely to be vacated for PKR president-elect Anwar Ibrahim.
“Among the seats which we feel may be vacated is Pandan because the MP there is (Deputy Prime Minister) Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail.
“So to ensure that Anwar becomes (prime minister), Pandan is among those which we feel is most suitable.
“You’re not going to ask someone else to vacate their seat when your own wife is an MP,” said Selangor PAS commissioner Sallehen Mukhyi to Malaysiakini today.
He was commenting on a statement issued today by Pandan PAS chief Iskandar Samad, who had instructed all machinery in Pandan to be ready for the possibility of a by-election in the near future.
Sallehen said that even though there are several other seats which PAS believed may be vacated for Anwar to contest, the Islamist party thinks Pandan is one of the most likely.
However, he noted, PAS has issued instructions not only to Pandan machinery but also to several other places such as Petaling Jaya.
“In Petaling Jaya, we also asked our members to get ready but it’s just that there are instances where we issued statements and instances where we didn’t,” he said.
In terms of preparations, Sallehen (photo) added, the party has given internal instructions for the machinery to prepare in terms of meetings, logistics, materials and finances.
It was earlier confirmed that the seat which Anwar will contest would be announced after the coming Wednesday.
Anwar is slated to succeed Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad within a few years but to do so, he would need to become an MP first.
Talk about which parliamentary seat will be vacated to trigger a by-election for Anwar to contest in has been rife, with several PKR MPs offering up their seats.
Pandan, which saw a five-way fight in the last general election, comprises of an equal population of Malays and Chinese at 46 percent each, with Indians making up another seven percent and others at one percent.
Wan Azizah won the seat with a 52,543-vote majority at 64,733 votes, with the second highest votes going to MCA at 12,190 votes.
Before the 2013 general election, Pandan was considered a stronghold for MCA and party veteran Ong Tee Keat.
However, Ong did not contest in Pandan in 2013 and PKR vice-president Rafizi Ramli won that seat against another MCA candidate. - Mkini
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