Umno's Pirdaus ready for Round 3

Former national mosque imam turned politician Pirdaus Ismail is unfazed by Anwar Ibrahim’s announcement to contest in the Permatang Pauh parliamentary by-election.

Pirdaus, who was defeated in the 2004 and 2008 polls by Anwar’s wife Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, said he is ready to take on the opposition stalwart if fielded as the Barisan Nasional candidate for the seat.

"At the same time, if there is another candidate, I will give all my support for that candidate," he told Malaysiakini today.

The Umno Youth exco member is also optimistic about the ruling coalition’s chances of wresting the seat away from PKR in the coming by-election.

"But it does not matter if we win or lose in the by-election. That is the nature of battles but what matters most is our fight for justice," he said.

'Sympathy icon'

According to Pirdaus, Wan Azizah, who is also PKR president, won because of sympathy votes and has not served the people in the constituency.

"She was only a sympathy icon because Anwar was behind her all along. It was okay for her not to do her job as she was not judged by her political capacity.

"I had been telling people (during my previous campaigns) that she would not do her job and vacate her seat for her husband and it is proven now," added the 43-year-old politician.

Yesterday, Wan Azizah resigned as MP in order to allow Anwar to contest the seat which was his stronghold prior to his sacking as deputy premier in 1998.

In the March 8 general election, Wan Azizah won by a whopping 13,388-vote majority. The battle was much closer in 2004, where she managed to edge Pirdaus by 590 votes.

Meanwhile, Pirdaus also affirmed his willingness for another electoral bout.

On that note, the Islamic leader stated that if BN was to field former PKR Youth chief Ezam Mohd Nor, he would provide his full support.

"He has come back to Umno's fold and we are open to everyone (to contest). This is our responsibility to give full and strong support to him," he said.

Ezam, who was Anwar's political secretary when he was deputy premier, joined Umno in May and recently expressed his willingness to take on his former mentor in a by-election.

Malay support

Pirdaus also stressed that Anwar could face 'obstacles' in Permatang Pauh since Pakatan Rakyat-led states, including Penang, are being judged by the people on their performance since the general election.

"They (the Penang state government) is playing with sensitive issues with the Malay voters by scrapping the New Economic Policy.

"It will be tough (for Anwar) to get Malay support now as they contribute the majority of the votes," he said.

Malays make up 70 percent of the registered voters in Permatang Pauh.

Pirdaus also felt that Anwar made a hasty decision to contest in the by-election without resolving the sodomy allegation against him.

"It looks as if his decision to contest now is because he wants to divert the attention from his sodomy case. He should clear his name first, then he can contest.

"He should at least swear that he is innocent as that is normal practice. Plus from a judicial perspective, he should go to court first," he said.

He also noted that Anwar's popularity has lost momentum since 1999 – during the ‘reformasi’ years- as "most of his campaigns now are not attended by as many people as before."