KUALA LUMPUR – PKR deputy president Rafizi Ramli announced today that he will seek to retain his position during the party’s elections scheduled for May.
According to local media reports, Rafizi expressed he had “no choice” but to defend his post, emphasising that PKR’s priority for the upcoming elections is to ensure a healthy competitive environment while maintaining focus on its responsibilities within the government.
“I have no choice, I cannot (afford to) not defend (the post), but then I think it’s too much drama (for the government) … at a time that we really need to pull through the next two to three years.
“So, fortunately or unfortunately, I have to defend my post and stand for election. I will stand, but I hope as much as possible that we will have a lot less drama.
“Let’s focus on the government, let’s focus on the public. I don’t think the public really wants to see too much drama from any political party,” he remarked at an event.
Rafizi was elected as PKR’s deputy president in 2022, defeating party secretary-general Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail.
Both are part of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s Cabinet, with Anwar also serving as the PKR president.
Rafizi previously held the position of PKR vice-president starting in 2014. He ran for the deputy presidency in 2018 but lost to Datuk Seri Azmin Ali, who is now with Bersatu.
Earlier, Anwar’s senior political secretary, Datuk Seri Shamsul Iskandar Akin, mentioned that the top two positions in PKR are unlikely to face competition in the May elections. – March 20, 2025