PKR deputy president Datuk Seri Rafizi Ramli has revealed receiving multiple invitations to join other political parties, including PAS, lately. He said he firmly rejected these offers as he reaffirms loyalty to the party.
Rafizi noted that such invitations are common, as his events attract diverse audiences, including PAS and UMNO supporters. He recalled his popularity among PAS voters during the Pakatan Rakyat era due to his exposés on scandals.
“I received many messages saying, ‘YB, I sympathise with you, believe me, only in PAS… you will be elevated.”
“Thank you, but whether it’s PAS or any other party, I’m not interested. I only know one party. I’m in this party, through thick and thin, not for positions,” he said.
Rafizi dismissed concerns of party interference in PKR’s election, except for a remark about PAS leader Datuk Seri Sanusi Md Nor’s letter to Nurul Izzah Anwar.
The PKR election campaign is getting much attention, to the point that a former minister, Datuk Zaid Ibrahim, had also appealed to Rafizi to join the Perikatan Nasional, inviting the powerful Pakatan Harapan orator for coffee to discuss modalities.
In a social media post, Zaid expressed sympathy for Rafizi Ramli, suggesting perceived attempts at his ousting from PKR’s leadership were due to a coup by a powerful political family, not incompetence.
That was before Zaid called Rafizi a “yes man” over his rationale for defending his post in the upcoming party elections.
During his Yang Bakar Menteri podcast last week, Rafizi said he wanted to remain the party’s number two, as he does not want PKR to be filled with “yes-man” or “sycophants”.
However, Zaid claimed that during Rafizi’s time in the Cabinet, he had never spoken up against any of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s policies.
“He says he doesn’t want PKR to be a party where people follow the leader blindly. But for the past two and a half years, hasn’t he been the deputy president? Wasn’t he a yes-man?” — May 17, 2025
Main photo credit: Malaysia Bangkit
