Batu MP won't quit, says Tian Chua didn't press him despite NGOs' calls

Batu MP P Prabakaran wants to serve his constituents until the end of his term and does not intend to resign midway.

The independent-turned-PKR lawmaker (above) said this in response to calls by certain NGOs to resign and pave the way for PKR vice president Tian Chua to make a comeback in a by-election.

"As a PKR MP, I would like to contribute my energy and effort for the good of the party in realising the reformasi agenda.

"I will serve the people in a transparent and fair manner and won't drop them halfway through," he said in a statement today.

Prabakaran won the Batu parliamentary seat after PKR threw its support behind the independent candidate in the 2018 general election.

This is after the Election Commission at the time disqualified Tian Chua, who has served as MP for the seat for 10 years, from contesting.

However, the Kuala Lumpur High Court ruled that the EC had erred and Tian Chua was qualified to contest in GE14 and can contest future elections.

Tian Chua had denied any role in the NGOs’ push for him to make a comeback, stressing that his legal challenge was to put on record that the EC had erred and not to trigger a by-election.

Prabakaran, in his statement, praised Tian Chua and said the PKR veteran had never pressured him.

"He had never pressed me on any issue nor has he directly negotiated with me about my duties or to resign as an MP...," he said.

He also noted that the call made by some of the NGOs for him to resign and make way for Tian Chua were done in a personal capacity instead of representing an entire organisation.

"I interact with my voters daily and they want a spirited youth to help them solve their problems," he said.

Prabakaran said he is working to solve their problems and will do his best in explaining the issues. - Mkini