SHAH ALAM, April 11 — Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) is “most likely” to field supreme council member Datuk Zaid Ibrahim in the April 25 Hulu Selangor parliamentary by-election if the Barisan Nasional (BN) names MIC deputy president Datuk G. Palanivel as its candidate, according to party insiders.
They said PKR may change its candidate at the 11th hour if the BN decides not to field Palanivel. “As for now, what I heard is that Zaid Ibrahim still tops the list of being the best PKR candidate for the by-election.
Zaid still carries ‘national weight’ despite being an outsider, and is seen by PKR as the best candidate to challenge the BN. “However, there could be a change (in the candidate) if the BN decides not to field Palanivel,” one party insider told Bernama.
He felt that Zaid and Palanivel would be the ideal candidates as both had served the federal government administration. Zaid, who was expelled from Umno in December 2008, was a minister in the Prime Minister’s Department in charge of legal affairs and judicial reform while Palanivel was the deputy minister of Women, Family and Community Development.
“It would be only appropriate if a Datuk fights a Datuk, a heavyweight fights a heavyweight,” the insider said.
Another insider said fielding Zaid will be favourable to PKR in light of the constituency’s recent voting pattern. “Zaid is a recognisable face. Everyone knows him and he is quite popular with the non-Malays as well.
Furthermore, Zaid is seen as a principled politician, since he was willing to resign as a minister. People respect him for this,” he said.
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