PUTRAJAYA: As Pakatan Rakyat meets on Friday to determine who will be the new opposition leader following Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s guilty verdict, two possible candidates have emerged.

Both candidates are from PKR, which is seen as the “middle ground” party in a coalition with disparate ideologies from the conservative, Islamist PAS at one end, to DAP, which is made up of secular, social democrats.

They are PKR president Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail and Selangor Menteri Besar Mohamed Azmin Ali.

Of the two, Wan Azizah has had the experience of being parliamentary opposition leader — she was chosen for the post in 1999, the first time her husband Anwar was jailed.

However, questions have emerged over whether she will be able to take on that responsibility again and unify the coalition, given the acrimonious relationship between PAS and DAP.

Leaders from the two parties have in recent weeks been trading barbs over local council elections and hudud law, which the PAS-led Kelantan government wants to implement in the East Coast state.

Political scientist Associate Prof Dr Shaharuddin Badaruddin said Wan Azizah would be up to it as long as she is willing to stand as candidate again in Pematang Pauh — the seat her husband currently holds.

“It would not be the first time she represents Permatang Pauh. When Anwar was not around, she stood in for him there.

“This could happen again but it depends on the party’s decision whether or not to field her as an MP,” Shaharuddin, of Universiti Institut Teknologi Mara, told The Malaysian Insider.

Wan Azizah was a two-term MP for Permatang Pauh from 1999 to 2008. The seat was previously Anwar’s, before he was jailed for abuse of power in 1999.

She quit as Permatang Pauh MP in 2008 to make way for Anwar’s return to Parliament.

Wan Azizah is currently the Kajang assemblyman.

Shaharuddin said Wan Azizah is currently the longest serving president of any political party whether from Pakatan or Barisan Nasional.

“She has headed PKR for 15 years. [PAS president] Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang took over in 2004 while Lim Guan Eng was only recently chosen as DAP secretary-general. [Umno president] Datuk Seri Najib Razak only took over in 2009,” said Shaharuddin.

Wan Azizah, said another political scientist Prof James Chin, is also one of the few personalities accepted by both PAS and DAP.

Chin, who is director of the Asia Institute at Tasmania University, said Wan Azizah would likely be chosen as she is seen as Anwar’s representative.

“But the problem is, if Wan Azizah is chosen again, it would make PKR look as if it is a party dominated by one family without room for anyone else.”

Choosing Wan Azizah would also risk reminding the public of the Kajang move — the controversial plot to replace former Selangor menteri besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim with Anwar.

Wan Azizah’s deputy in PKR, Mohamed Azmin, has also emerged as a possible candidate owing to his vast experience in politics. He started at roughly the same time as Anwar 25 years ago. A former aide to Anwar, Mohamed Azmin left Umno and BN when his boss was removed as deputy prime minister in 1998.

Wan Saiful Wan Jan, the executive director of the think tank Institute of Democracy and Economic Affairs, said Mohamed Azmin is the better bet to replace Anwar.

“Of the three parties in Pakatan, the opposition leader usually comes from PKR because PAS is seen as too Malay and DAP as too Chinese. PKR is the party in the middle.

“Like it or not, PKR needs to put forth a suitable candidate and right now the most senior and most qualified is Azmin.

“Azmin’s advantage is that he is a menteri besar and that means he has resources,” Wan Saiful told The Malaysian Insider.

He said although some claim Mohamed Azmin has weak interpersonal skills, the Hulu Klang assemblyman is a good political strategist.

“The reality is PKR has no other candidate. That responsibility [of being opposition leader] has to fall on Azmin.”

While not denying that Mohamed Azmin has the capability, Chin said he is not trusted by some in DAP.

Wan Saiful said it is not just DAP that has trust issues with Mohamed Azmin, there are also PKR leaders who do not trust him.

“Even though there are shortcomings in Azmin, Pakatan parties have to accept the fact that there is no one else,” Wan Saiful said.

He does not think Mohamed Azmin is too young for the post or that he would not be senior enough to mediate between the warring personalities in DAP and PAS.

“This is not a problem of Azmin being too young but that of the leaders in DAP and PAS being too old. The ones fighting in DAP and PAS are [DAP parliamentary leader] Lim Kit Siang and Hadi.

“Both of them should think of retiring as the younger leaders in both parties don’t seem to have a problem getting along. The elders in DAP and PAS have also not been successful in unifying their parties.”

For political scientist Prof Datuk Mohamad Abu Bakar of Universiti Malaya, what is more important than who replaces Anwar is the question of whether Pakatan can continue without him.

“If all are united, Anwar’s absence will not be a big issue. The general election is also a long way off. If there is conflict it is best that it happens now before the election,” said Mohamad.

He said a change in the post of opposition leader is unlikely to affect Pakatan as the coalition has long been established.

“Anwar’s absence can be a unifying factor for Pakatan, regardless whether it is led by Wan Azizah, Hadi or Lim.” — The Malaysian Insider

This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, on February 11, 2015.