Nurul Nuha Anwar is entrusted with leading the 'March to Freedom' campaign to free her father from prison, but analysts have voiced concern over moves to have her stand in Permatang Pauh for the expected by-election. – The Malaysian Insider pic by Kamal Ariffin, February 16, 2015.A new star will be born if Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's second daughter is chosen to contest in his Permatang Pauh parliamentary seat, but fielding Nurul Nuha Anwar risks tainting Pakatan Rakyat (PR) with charges of nepotism, analysts said.
Such a move will also not do much to help the opposition pact find its own footing without the charismatic leader, they said.
It has been suggested that while any candidate from Anwar's party, PKR, could easily win the state seat in Penang, it was equally important for the opposition to show that it was taking steps to move out of his shadow, and to unite and become a credible challenge to the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN), now that their leader is in jail.
Speculation is rife that Nurul Nuha, 31, is being considered for the seat, replacing her father who was jailed on February 10 after the Federal Court upheld his sodomy conviction and five-year jail sentence.
Fuelling these rumours was the announcement by the publicity-shy mother of two the next day that she would lead the "March to Freedom" campaign to free her father from prison.
However, political analyst Dr Lim Teck Ghee said PKR would be seen as a party that practised nepotism should it field one of Anwar's immediate family members, adding that it would make the party less credible in its struggle against such politics after having accused BN of the same.
After Anwar was first imprisoned over his first sodomy conviction in 1999, his wife Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail contested and won in Permatang Pauh, and also went on to become PKR president. Anwar, however, remained PKR's de facto leader.
"It is not a good suggestion as it would show that nepotism exists," said Lim of Nurul Nuha as an election candidate this soon.
"She should contest only after having shown she has served in politics and has fulfilled the same conditions as the rest of them," said the director of the Centre for Policy Initiatives (CPI).
He said that while Nurul Nuha, or any PKR candidate, was bound to win the seat if contested, the individual must be able to step out of Anwar's shadows and stand on their own.
"Whoever contests must stand on their own record and bring change and meet the needs of the Permatang Pauh constituents, instead of riding on Anwar's popularity," said Lim.
However, Dr James Chin, who heads the Asia Institute at the University of Tasmania, said the issue of nepotism or family legacy did not arise, adding that Malaysian state and parliamentary representatives came from varied backgrounds.
"You don't need any qualifications to become a YB (lawmaker) in Malaysia, in fact I know two representatives who only worked as hawkers.
"The only things preventing you from becoming one is if you have been convicted in a criminal case or are bankrupt, as well as the age factor. Other than that, anyone can be a representative."
Like Lim, he said any PKR candidate for the Permatang Pauh seat would win on sympathy votes for Anwar.
"She (Nurul Nuha) will win, she will have no problem. Whether they campaign or not, BN is sure to lose."
Ibrahim Suffian, the executive director of independent pollster Merdeka Center, said the Permatang Pauh seat was synonymous with Anwar and his family, and that anyone who contested must gain the opposition leader's approval.
"The main benchmark is not whether the candidate is Anwar's daughter, but who can carry on his agenda," said Ibrahim.
He said the parliamentary seat would require a leader who could take on a huge responsibility and become the uniting factor for all component parties in PR, in light of the internal conflict the opposition pact was going through.
"The individual fielded should be able to carry out the duties not just that of a PKR MP, but must also mend the ties between the PR component parties, because lately their relationship has been strained. So it is not just about PKR, but PR," he said.
Anwar's replacement must be someone who can show their capabilities to the public, he said.
"PR must continue maintaining their presence in the public to restore their image, which has been beaten after their internal spats.
"So whoever becomes the Permatang Pauh MP will be shouldering a huge responsibility and must be truly capable of doing the job," Ibrahim said.
Similarly, Lim said PR had to consider the political instability it was experiencing now, even though PKR's allies, DAP and PAS have grown quiet for now in their disputes of hudud or the Islamic penal code and local government elections.
A PKR source told The Malaysian Insider that they had yet to discuss a replacement for Anwar, whose only chance for freedom lies in a royal pardon. However, it is not clear if he will request one given the view that doing so would imply guilt in the sodomy case which he has claimed was a political conspiracy.
"There have been no discussions yet, Anwar is still the MP and efforts to request for a royal pardon is ongoing," said the source from the office of PKR deputy president Azmin Ali.
Dr Wan Azizah, the party president, has so far denied any political moves being the decision to make Nurul Nuha the face of the campaign to free Anwar.
The campaign is seen as a preparatory assignment for a possible future in politics for Nurul Nuha, who holds a degree in arts and visual technology from the George Mason University in Virginia, US.
At a press conference held at the family's residence last Wednesday, PKR vice-president Nurul Izzah Anwar introduced her sister to the media.
"Nurul Nuha will play a role in the March to Freedom campaign. The focus (now) is to set up the secretariat (for the campaign) and we will be engaging several personalities in this regard and to ensure that Nurul Nuha becomes its face," said Nurul Izzah.
The Federal Court last Tuesday dismissed Anwar's final appeal and sentenced him to five years' jail for sodomising his former aide, Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan, in 2008.
The Federal Constitution bars anyone sentenced to over a year in prison or fined more than RM2,000 from holding public office.
Election Commission (EC) chairman Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Mohd Yusof said the EC would only announce the Permatang Pauh seat's vacancy after receiving an official letter from the Dewan Rakyat Speaker.
- TMI
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.