Be impartial, Afif tells PKR central election committee

BUTTERWORTH: The PKR central election committee (JPP) must not be seen to be promoting candidates publicly during the party election process, says PKR Youth deputy chief Dr Afif Bahardin.

The JPP is in charge of the party’s election process and must remain impartial, he added.

“We cannot have the JPP openly campaigning for any candidate, either on social media or anywhere else.

“I see there is a tendency for them to do that,” he said during a press conference after the opening of the second Seberang Prai International Conference on Ecotourism and Conservation Efforts at The Light Hotel Penang.

Dr Afif, however, declined to name the candidate, saying he did not want to pinpoint anyone.

He said PKR currently has over 850,000 members nationwide and the membership will double to 1.5 million or more later.

“So, I feel that we need to improve the party election process and based on what I have observed as a member and a candidate, there is still room for improvement so that it runs smoothly next time,” he said.

The PKR e-voting involving members in Kedah and Penang hit a snag with claims of sabotage last month.

On a separate matter, Dr Afif said the time has come for ministers to perform and deliver on their promises.

“It has been five months since Pakatan Harapan took over Putrajaya and the honeymoon period is over.

“Now, the people’s expectation is different, they are looking at us under a microscope and expect a more responsive government so it is time that ministers up their game so that civil servants will follow suit,” he said.

“There is a need for ministers to improve their performances and to engage with the public, especially youth. With the exception of Youth and Sports Minister Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman, a lot of ministers do not engage with the youth at all.

“They need to look at the aspirations of the youth so that we can look at our own strengths and weaknesses and then plan accordingly,” Dr Afif added.