The Malaysian Insight

THE contest for the position of PKR Youth chief should have been a straight fight to mirror the rivalry for the party’s deputy presidency.

But it has become a three-cornered affair among front-runners Seberang Jaya assemblyman Afif Bahardin, Johor Baru MP Akmal Nasir and Najwan Halimi, the Kota Anggerik assemblyman.

Najwan, Anwar Ibrahim’s former special officer, joined the fray in what Youth wing sources said is a personal battle after being sidelined in his bid for the deputy Youth chief’s post.

Afif and Akmal are aligned to rivals for the PKR deputy president’s post – incumbent Azmin Ali and challenger vice-president Rafizi Ramli, respectively.

Najwan, 32, threw his hat in the ring when he was first asked to join Afif’s team as a candidate for a vice-president’s post, sources said.

“But he was not satisfied with that. He was aiming for the No. 2 spot in the wing because of his age, as he cannot contest in PKR Youth in future elections,” said a source.

The age limit to contest in Youth elections for all posts is 35, an amendment adopted in 2010 from the previous age limit of 40.

“Najwan wanted to be Youth deputy. What’s more, he has been in Keadilan for longer than (Afif’s running mate) Hilman Idham,” the source added.

Hilman, who is Gombak Setia assemblyman, is 29 and has teamed up with Afif to be his deputy. Both support Azmin for party deputy president.

A recent report in The Star cited sources as saying that Hilman, who is Azmin’s political secretary, was ordered to contest the Youth deputy chief’s post to prepare him for climbing higher up the ranks.

But another source close to Afif said the reasons were more practical in nature, in that Hilman’s wide network with PKR Youth grassroots across the country was an advantage compared with Najwan’s limited connections.

“(Najwan) has no network in the north. In Selangor, he has some influence as well as in Malacca,” said the source, referring to Najwan’s running mate Naqiuddin Nazrin, who is Malacca deputy Youth chief.

“Hilman has long been involved in organising the network of PKR Youth grassroots.”

Neither has Najwan announced plans for his Youth exco line-up, compared with his two rivals, especially Afif, who is “more organised”, added the source.

Who wins in a three-cornered fight

Meanwhile, another wing source said a three-cornered fight would benefit Akmal, the Johor Baru MP.

“It gives Akmal an edge because Najwan will dilute the ‘cartel’ vote,” he said, referring to the label given to Azmin’s supporters.

“Akmal is more influential in the south and is building a network with Rafizi’s team. Najwan will probably dilute votes (for Rafizi’s team) in Selangor,” said the source, who is close to Akmal.

However, Najwan denied the allegation and said he was contesting the Youth chief post to make the wing less “elitist” and less “tied to personalities”.

“It doesn’t make sense, where did this story come from? I’m contesting because of the policies I spoke about the other day. Nothing to do with seniority and all that,” Najwan told The Malaysian Insight.

In their public statements on their candidacies, Najwan and Naqiuddin both said they wanted to make PKR Youth more inclusive.

Najwan previously admitted that his chances of winning were not as good as Afif and Akmal’s, but he promised to make the wing more dynamic, free from the influence of certain figures and to champion the people’s issues. – August 15, 2018.