KUCHING: The controversy surrounding Nurul Izzah Anwar’s move to resign as PKR deputy president could be a warning of deeper internal problems within the party, according to political pundit Datuk Peter Minos.
He said the development should not be viewed in isolation, arguing that the departure of prominent leaders and growing questions over PKR’s reformist credentials could point to a wider crisis of confidence within the party.
“If your party deputy president wants to resign, it only means that there are internal problems in your party,” he said.
PKR’s Central Leadership Council rejected Nurul Izzah’s resignation request but granted her temporary leave to focus on her doctoral studies.
She had said her decision followed careful consideration and that she intended to pursue further studies while continuing to support PKR and its struggle for a better Malaysia.
Minos said, however, the circumstances surrounding the episode had inevitably raised questions about what was happening within PKR.
“What went wrong in PKR? Nobody is telling, but we can guess,” he said, suggesting that Nurul Izzah could have been unhappy with the party’s electoral performance, including its setbacks in recent state elections and the challenges it could face in future polls.
He stressed that these were possibilities rather than confirmed reasons for her decision.
Minos, a veteran in politics, also pointed to the longstanding criticism of nepotism surrounding Nurul Izzah’s rise within PKR, saying she may have become tired of suggestions that she secured the deputy presidency largely because she is the daughter of Prime Minister and PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
“Maybe she is not happy with some of PKR’s policies and actions. Or with partner, DAP,” he said.
He added that another possibility was that Nurul Izzah could foresee a difficult future for PKR at the next general election, particularly if voters believed the party had lost its reformist identity or failed to deliver on governance.
Minos acknowledged that some might view Nurul Izzah’s move as embarrassing for her father, but said younger politicians were increasingly independent-minded.
“Young people these days are pretty independent-minded. They have minds of their own. And no force can stop them once they make up their minds. It is a new world now, a new ‘dunia perubahan’ (era of change),” he said.
He warned that the episode could have a wider “Nurul effect” within PKR, potentially encouraging others who were dissatisfied with the party’s direction to reconsider their positions.
Former deputy president Datuk Seri Rafizi Ramli and former vice-president Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad left the party in May and vacated their parliamentary seats.
Minos also pointed to Subang MP Wong Chen, who has been aligned with Rafizi and had indicated that if he contested the next general election, he would do so as a Bersama candidate.
He said such developments were disturbing because they suggested that dissatisfaction within PKR extended beyond a single individual.
He recalled that PKR was initially conceived as a multiracial party, attracting Malays, Chinese and Indians who were enthusiastic about its reform agenda.
“Over the years, PKR has started to forget why it existed in the first place,” he said, arguing that the party had failed to deliver fully on the reforms it once promised and had become too dependent on its political partnership with DAP.
He said rising living costs and unresolved issues affecting ordinary Malaysians had also contributed to doubts about PKR.
According to Minos, the party now faces an “existential problem” as Malay voters dissatisfied with the political direction of the peninsula increasingly unite behind UMNO and PAS.
Can PKR recover? Minos believes it can, but only if it undertakes genuine reforms and reconnects with its original ideals.
He said the party still had about a year to demonstrate effective governance, abandon its perceived “vengeance streak”, leave past political battles behind and focus on issues affecting the people.
“But maybe it is too late. No matter what PKR is doing now, people may have already made up their mind about PKR,” he said.
