Razeef Rakimin

KOTA KINABALU (May 11): Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) Tuaran chief Razeef Rakimin has called on the party to stop relying on shifting senior leaders to supposedly safe seats whenever support for the party weakens in certain constituencies.

He said the party leadership must instead focus on strengthening strategy, and embrace internal reforms rather than prioritise the political survival of prominent figures.

“The time has come for the leaderships to stop exhausting grassroots members solely to ensure that several big names remain comfortable in safe seats.

“Party members work tirelessly on the ground to defend the party during difficult times, not to witness a culture of seeking easy routes being celebrated when the party is at the height of power,” he said in a statement yesterday.

Razeef said recent discussions surrounding PKR seat allocations and speculation involving several senior leaders contesting in different constituencies had created growing unease among grassroots supporters.

Among the names being discussed, he said, were proposals involving Nurul Izzah Anwar contesting in Batu or Bandar Tun Razak, while there were also suggestions for party president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to contest in Ampang instead of Tambun.

He added that other names being linked to seat changes included Tengku Zafrul Aziz in Pandan instead of Kuala Selangor, Amirudin Shari in Selayang instead of Gombak, as well as Ramanan and Fuziah contesting in Batu.

According to Razeef, such developments risk creating the perception that the party’s reform agenda is becoming increasingly disconnected from ordinary Malaysians.

“Every time the people begin to withdraw support, the solution should not simply be moving certain leaders from one constituency to another to save their respective political careers,” he said.

He stressed that PKR, as a reform-oriented party, should not fear leadership renewal and should instead create space for a new generation if certain leaders were no longer able to maintain public support.

“Do not merely speak about change for the country while failing to implement change within the party itself,” he said.

Razeef also suggested that Anwar should consider returning to Permatang Pauh, which he described as the birthplace of the reform movement’s struggle and sacrifices.

“That is where the dignity of this struggle was built. Do not allow Permatang Pauh to remain merely a nostalgic chapter of history when the people once sacrificed greatly for an idealism called reformation,” he said.

He warned that if the current political culture continues, the Permatang Pauh Declaration would eventually become “nothing more than a piece of rhetorical paper”, with its original spirit overshadowed by internal power struggles and competition for seats.

Razeef also called on party members and leaders to remain committed to the principles of reform and grassroots empowerment rather than focusing solely on political positioning ahead of future elections.

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