SARAWAK PKR has cancelled its annual congress on November 23 in support of party deputy president Mohamed Azmin Ali, who has been spurned from officiating the national youth wing’s congress next month.

The move is set to cause further fallout in the party, which has seen a division into camps that support PKR president Anwar Ibrahim and those that support Azmin.

A statement signed by all Sarawak PKR leaders read that they wanted the party leadership to solve the matter in a just and fair manner.

“If the crisis is not handled immediately by the party leadership, it will only result in a deeper crisis and division in PKR,” the state leaders, led by Sarawak PKR chairman Baru Bian, said.

PKR’s youth wing had cancelled its invitation to Azmin to officiate its congress on December 6.

It instead invited former party president Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, who is also the deputy prime minister, to officiate at the gathering.

Reacting to the snub, Azmin had yesterday said unseen hands were involved in blocking him from officiating the congress.

The youth wing retorted by saying Azmin only had himself to blame for not replying to its invitation.

Sarawak PKR said it was disappointed with the developments as it has been tradition for the party’s deputy president to officiate the youth wing’s national congress.

“We are disappointed with the betrayal of this tradition as it is a common knowledge that two-thirds of the party’s elected national leaders have expressed their support for Azmin to officiate the youth congress.

“We fear this hasty decision will bury democracy in PKR,” they added.

The statement was signed by all state PKR leaders, except for the state youth chief, who yesterday expressed solidarity with the national youth wing to invite Wan Azizah. – November 15, 2019.