LETTER | Day after day we hear positive views on the administration. The political climate has returned to normal and finally a stable government.
There is no doubt the PKR leadership has confidence in facing the upcoming state elections. Grassroots members are eager to see their party be dominant and deliver an even more impressive result than GE15.
It is true PKR succeeded in forming the largest block, but the circumstance needed it to collaborate with Umno despite it being a bitter pill to swallow by core supporters on both sides.
This matter however is no longer moot as the king decreed for leaders of respective parties to form a unity government. A national agenda is served but leaders in each division and the grassroots are waiting for seat arrangements for the state election.
A lingering question - how far will PKR go to compromise with its new political allies?
During GE15, Rafizi Ramli was given full authority to negotiate and arrange seats for candidates. Many were unhappy with the result of parachuted candidates placed in areas where they did not have grassroots support. Their unfamiliar faces in respective divisions invited sabotage by disgruntled PKR members.
Rafizi acted belligerently to even allow those who only became PKR members for less than two weeks to contest!
How will PKR lead Pakatan Harapan if its own leaders are ignorant of the voices from the grassroots? Why did party president Anwar Ibrahim choose to remain silent then?
If this remains to be the way, PKR is destined to be punished. Perikatan Nasional is expecting to win more seats in the state elections by taking advantage of discontent within PKR machinery.
Rafizi is keen on formulas and ideas that lack details for implementation. Just look at how seats were given to candidates without real insight.
PKR contested 72 seats and won 29 seats, giving it a 40 percent success rate in GE15. Whereas in GE14, PKR contested 73 seats and won 48 seats, giving it a 65 percent success rate! How did Rafizi's formula as election director go so wrong in comparison?
Many PKR members are even disappointed with the party polls’ results before the election. The system used was unsafe from negligence and just looking at the result of division chiefs winning despite their lineup suffering a humiliating defeat, created more doubt among party members against their leaders.
If PKR members had accused traits of negligence in the system and a forensic audit took place subsequently, then it comes as no surprise if the election director had his own way of arranging the seats for candidates recklessly and applied favouritism.
Talks among PKR members had also been rife about Nurul Izzah Anwar being ill-advised and choosing a dangerous seat in GE15. She was said to have wanted to contest in Bandar Tun Razak but a final swap was allegedly made under the advice of the election director to remain in Permatang Pauh.
Anwar must directly get involved to save his party. The voices on the ground must never be ignored to avoid any risks of internal sabotage in the state elections. For PKR to be dominant, its leaders must stop imagining everything is dandy on the ground.
A leader must put the interest of the people first because without their support you can never guarantee victory for the party.
The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.
