Sabah PKR Youth chief has no right to speak for others, says deputy

 

PKR will discuss the party’s internal problems in Sabah during a meeting tomorrow.

PETALING JAYA: Sabah PKR Youth’s deputy chief, Remysta Taylor, has hit out at the wing’s chief after claiming that 15 division youth chiefs were not consulted in a pledge made in support of embattled Sabah PKR chairman Sangkar Rasam.

On Wednesday, Sabah PKR Youth chief Zaidi Jatil said the party is fully behind Sangkar, who has faced calls to resign for his allegedly poor leadership of the state chapter.

Remysta Taylor.

However, Remysta said Zaidi never consulted the 15 division youth chiefs.

“We’ve learned that in politics, there are times when it’s better to keep our mouth shut,” he said in a joint statement with the division youth chiefs.

“He never consulted the rest of us in the youth movement before making the statement, so this means he did not represent the views of the entire Sabah PKR Youth.

“It’s unfair to the 15 division youth chiefs if he claimed to have spoken on behalf of the movement.”

Last week, 15 of the state’s 26 division chiefs demanded that Sangkar resign from his post after claims that he was not pro-active and had not conducted any leadership or election training programmes since becoming state chief in August 2022.

Sangkar dismissed the calls for him to resign, stating that criticism of his leadership has affected the chapter’s planning for the next state election.

Sabah Wanita PKR chief Noriha Yakub also issued a statement in support of Sangkar, which saw her being accused of abusing her power by 15 Sabah Wanita PKR division chiefs.

Remysta cautioned that taking sides in the ongoing power struggle can cause cracks within the party and said that Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who is also the PKR president, is best suited to resolve the issue.

“The problem with taking sides is that if things go wrong, our party can be weakened. I believe our president knows the best way to deal with the power struggle,” he said.

“There’ll always be power struggles in any political leadership, but those of us on the wings should understand our position and do our jobs with our mouths zipped.

“We risk making things worse when we blindly take sides.”

PKR communications director Lee Chean Chung previously told FMT that PKR will discuss the internal upheaval in Sabah during its central leadership council meeting tomorrow, with Anwar expected to chair the meeting. - FMT