After week’s silence, PRM finally starts Permatang Pauh campaign
(Malay Mail Online) – Parti Rakyat Malaysia (PRM) that is also contesting in the Permatang Pauh by-election finally made an appearance today on the eighth day of the campaign.
The little-known party called a press conference this morning to introduce its candidate, Azman Shah Othman, and explain its campaign strategy.
“We are not going to organise any large scale ceramahs or events but we will be meeting the people more,” Azman said at the press conference at Safira Country Club in Seberang Jaya here.
He said they will let their political opponents, Barisan Nasional and PKR, organise the major events and ceramahs.
“People can go for their large scale events and after that, we will meet the people to ‘brainwash them’ and we will ‘surprise’ everyone in the end,” he said.
PRM only started meeting the people yesterday and Azman said they will continue doing so to “reach out to the people” throughout the campaign period until polling day on May 7.
He said his goal is to be there for the people and really listen to them, which he believed the young voters are more receptive to.
When asked about the Penang PRM branch’s objections against Azman as the candidate, the party vice president Goh Chuin Loon said the former Penang PRM chairman Gary Nair is now only an ordinary member.
She also said the Penang PRM branch no longer exists as the party, during its last congress in November, had combined all branches here into the northern zone PRM.
“We respect Gary’s views on this as he is a long-time member of PRM but we believe that his objections were due to a misunderstanding and pure miscommunication,” she said.
Gary had objected to Azman’s candidacy and PRM contesting in the by-election, while claiming Azman was not a party member.
Goh said Azman had joined PRM on April 9 this year but before that he had been a “strong PRM supporter”.
When asked why a new member was picked as a candidate, she said it is because he was a local and very passionate about serving the people.
As for PRM’s stand on the controversial hudud bill submitted by PAS, Azman said they support hudud as it is Allah’s law but they must first look at how the government plans to implement and enforce it.
The northern zone PRM is based in Sungai Petani, Kedah and they admitted that they had “very few PRM members in Penang”.
Azman is in a four corner fight with PKR’s Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, BN’s Suhaimi Sabudin and independent candidate Salleh Isahak for the May 7 by-election.
