PKR president Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail today brushed aside dissenting voices within the party about the timing of her husband Anwar Ibrahim’s decision to contest in Port Dickson so soon after the national elections in May.

“He has been in jail for 10, 11 years now. What do you mean when you talk about impatience?

“It’s a good time and he wants to contribute. He was denied a chance to be in Parliament. It was taken away,” Dr Wan Azizah told reporters after visiting the Orphancare Foundation in Petaling Jaya this afternoon.

Anwar could not contest in the 14th general election on May 9 as he was in prison for a second sodomy charge. He was released with full pardon a week after Pakatan Harapan pulled off a stunning upset and won Putrajaya from Barisan Nasional.

The incoming PKR president had then said that he was not in a hurry to take over from Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad. His announcement to contest in Port Dickson yesterday has thus elicited mixed reactions from within PKR and the Malaysian public.

Some PKR lawmakers have expressed open support for Anwar while others have questioned the lack of consultation with party leaders and the timing.

Dr Wan Azizah also brushed aside criticism of nepotism in PKR as president-elect Anwar, herself and their daughter Nurul Izzah Anwar have senior ranks within the party.

“Is it a problem that we were voted in by the rakyat?” she said before leaving.

Nurul Izzah, who is MP for Permatang Pauh, is vying to retain the vice-president post in the ongoing PKR polls. – September 13, 2018.