PRM skips Sungai Bakap polls after proposed candidate found to be bankrupt

Ahmad Jufliz Faiza said PRM had also faced pressure to skip the by-election to avoid splitting votes. (Bernama pic)

PETALING JAYA: Parti Rakyat Malaysia has decided to sit out the by-election for the Sungai Bakap state seat in Penang next month.

PRM president Ahmad Jufliz Faiza told FMT that the decision was made after a screening process discovered that the party’s best candidate was a bankrupt.

Jufliz also revealed that PRM had faced pressure from a political coalition to skip the by-election so that votes would not be split. He did not name the coalition.

“We’re not sitting out the by-election due to such pressure, but the lack of time to find a suitable candidate at the last minute,” he said.

Jufliz said the party was “very surprised and saddened” by the information about the candidate’s bankruptcy status, which was uncovered during a screening process. “The candidate initially informed us during a political bureau meeting that he had no debts,” Jufliz said.

“Since tomorrow is the nomination day for the by-election, we have decided not to find a replacement due to time constraints in screening new candidates,” he said.

“But it does not mean we will not contest in future elections. We will ensure PRM remains relevant in national politics.”

Yesterday, Jufliz confirmed that PRM would be throwing its hat into the ring for the by-election despite its severe loss last month in the Kuala Kubu Baharu by-election, when the party’s candidate lost her deposit.

The Kuala Kubu Baharu seat was won by Pakatan Harapan’s Pang Sock Tao of DAP. She defeated her closest rival, Perikatan Nasional’s Khairul Azhari Saut, with a 3,869-vote majority.

Independent candidate Nyau Ke Xin and PRM’s Hafizah Zainuddin polled only 188 and 152 ballots, respectively.

The Sungai Bakap by-election will be held on July 6 with nominations taking place tomorrow.

PH has named PKR’s Joohari Ariffin as its candidate while Abidin Ismail of PAS will be contesting for PN. Abidin is a former aide to the Sungai Bakap assemblyman, Nor Zamri Latiff, whose death on May 24 caused the state seat to fall vacant.