KUANTAN: Indera Mahkota Member of Parliament Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah is now being pressured to quit his Parliamentary seat here.
This was after the former Foreign Minister quit PKR along with eight other MPs following the sacking of former PKR deputy president Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali and party vice president Zuraida Kamaruddin on Feb 24.
Indera Mahkota PKR division, in a statement, said Saifuddin contested and won the seat during the 14th General Election (GE14) under the PKR banner but decided to quit the party for his own personal interest.
"He is like 'kacang lupakan kulit' as he contested in Indera Mahkota with the blessing from Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail (then PKR President) and received the assistance from the Indera Mahkota election machinery during GE14.
"His move to quit PKR has not only upset the voters in the constituency but also tarnished PKR's image for betraying the voters' mandate. It is his move along with 10 others which led to the current political turmoil... they used dirty tactics or "back-door" to form a new government in a bid to prevent Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim from becoming the eighth prime minister," read the statement.
The statement further stated that the 11 MPs move was not to ensure the country's administration would remain stable but merely to safeguard their positions and self interest for the future.
"Leaders who prioritise the interest of the rakyat will always emphasise on the country and its people, and not like what is taking place now. Even till now, the 11 independent MPs are trying to justify their decision with illogical reasons but they have to be responsible for the entire incident.
"We stress that since the Indera Mahkota MP has betrayed the mandate given by the voters in the parliamentary constituency, we urge him to immediately step down," read the statement.
Indera Mahkota PKR division chief Lee Chean Chung said the division adopted the decision at an emergency meeting today as they felt Saifuddin's exit from PKR was disrespectful to the people who had pledged their support for him.
The Semambu assemblyman who is also PKR's treasurer-general described the Indera mahkota PKR branch leaders as being upset and shocked over the former Pakatan Harapan secretariat chief’s move as he never discussed the matter with them and they only learnt it from the media.
On the division's next move if Saifuddin remained as the MP, Lee replied things will no longer be the same as they might not be able to work together.
"We will not provide any support as usually the support is only given to a candidate from the respective party. PKR might appoint a coordinator to manage the parliamentary constituency but it is still too early to decide.
"We have drawn a clear line today and are prepared for a by-election if that happens. Even till now, Saifuddin has never contacted the division to provide any updates," he said at his service centre here today.
The other eight MPs are Baru Bian (Selangau), Datuk Kamaruddin Jaafar (Bandar Tun Razak), Datuk Mansor Othman (Nibong Tebal), Datuk Rashid Hasnoon (Batu Pahat), Datuk Seri Santhara Kumar (Segamat), Ali Biju (Saratok), Willie Mongin (Puncak Borneo) and Jonathan Yasin (Ranau) who on Monday announced their departure from PKR to become independents.
The Semambu state seat is among the two constituencies under the Indera Mahkota parliament which also includes Beserah where Andansura Rabu from Pas is the elected representative.
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