Welcome the political battle royal in PKR involving Nurul Izzah – Rafizi Ramli, says political scientist

A political scientist has heralded that competition should be welcome in a matured political arena as a battle royal shapes up in a contest for the PKR deputy president post between the incumbent Datuk Seri Rafizi Ramli and challenger Nurul Izzah Anwar.

Dr Wong Chin Huat, who is a Professor at the Jeffery Sachs Center on Sustainable Development at the Sunway University, said that in a matured democracy, competition is unavoidably present so Nurul Izzah has every right to stand.

In an interesting straight fight, Nurul Izzah is up against her one – time ally Rafizi, a federal minister, who oversees the Economic Ministry.

Rafizi has been campaigning outlining that support for PKR has nosedived since 2022 despite that party president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim is the prime minister and the party has a central role in the Madani national unity government.

But as Nurul Izzah’s father is Anwar, who dominates the party, the rallying for his daughter to contest would be seen as reflecting the will of Anwar, said Wong in an interview.

Rafizi in a party rally in Negri Sembilan on Sunday shared data that support for the party has eroded since 2022 with worrying tends also evident among the Chinese and Indian communities, who have stayed loyal to the party since 2008.

Wong said that the nepotism contention would strengthen the perception that PKR is centered on one person and one family, even though Nurul Izzah is charismatic and competent in her own way.

“It is inevitable for some quarters to compare PKR to Umno since two – term Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamed where number two seldom lasts long enough to succeed the number one,” the academic said.

Comparing PKR to Umno

As the Prime Minister’s party, PKR is in an unprecedented circumstance as compared to Umno before 2018.

PKR is only the second largest party in the government, and the third largest in Parliament.

And because its former rival, Umno, is now an indispensable ally, meaning that PKR cannot contest against the nationalist Malay party in the next general election, leaving only ethnically mixed constituencies lost to the Opposition Perikatan Nasional (PN) for them to win back.

“And the need to make the four coalition, 18 – member parties Madani government means that PKR cannot pursue its political goals such as reforms even if it is keen on.”

This results in some sense of an identity crisis in PKR – surrounded by many allies and competitors.

It has the greatest access to government power and resources, yet it has trouble showing the unique values of voting PKR in the next election, said Wong.

Besides factional rivalry, the challenge to Rafizi somewhat reflects a desire to try something different since the contestation for party presidency is a no – go, said Wong.

An observer’s outlook on PKR polls

Meanwhile vice – president aspirant Sim Tze Tzin took to social media to showcase that veteran Penang political observer Datuk Dr Toh Kin Woon had shared with him.

“Is Nurul Izzah’s candidacy for Deputy President considered nepotism? It’s a question that has stirred discussion among the chattering class.”

“Yesterday, after Nurul Izzah submitted her nomination, I took the opportunity to ask a respected and principled former leader, Dr Toh for his thoughts.”

“His response was clear and thoughtful: Nurul Izzah is a leader in her own right. She was not handed positions on a silver platter, and she has earned her place through a highly competitive party election.”

Dr Toh reportedly also said that the party’s grassroots are fiercely independent—they will decide based on merit.

“We should not deny a good leader the opportunity to serve the people. I thanked Dr Toh for his wisdom. His words serve as a timely reminder that leadership must be evaluated on integrity, ability, and service,” said Sim.