KUALA LUMPUR: Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) vice-president Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad today stressed the importance of the party remaining committed to nurturing young talent to ensure its continued success.
Nik Nazmi, who is also Minister of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability, said PKR has a strong track record of producing young leaders, many of whom entered politics at an early age and have since gained valuable experience.
“(Prime Minister and PKR president) Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim often mentions that he was able to groom leaders like Rafizi (Minister of Economy Datuk Seri Rafizi Ramli), myself, Lih Kang (Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation Chang Lih Kang), Amirudin (Selangor Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari), Nurul Izzah Anwar, and Fahmi (Minister of Communications Datuk Fahmi Fadzil).
“We are all now in our 40s, and many of us became legislators in our 20s,” he told reporters after attending the Concorde Club meeting at Wisma Bernama today.
The Member of Parliament (MP) for Setiawangsa acknowledged that during the early stages of his political career, there was a shortage of candidates, prompting younger leaders like himself and Amirudin to step up and assume responsibilities.
“But the challenge now is what’s next? Previously, Amirudin and I stepped forward because there were not enough candidates. That was the reality.
“Now, there’s a long queue of people wanting to contest. How do we avoid becoming victims of our own success? This is why it is crucial to continue attracting idealistic, talented, young professional Malaysians into the party,” he said.
Earlier, Nik Nazmi, along with four other incumbents - Amirudin, Chang, Nurul Izzah, and Negeri Sembilan Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Aminuddin Harun - confirmed their intention to defend their vice-president posts in the party polls scheduled for May 24.
Additionally, Fahmi, who is PKR information chief, along with the party’s deputy information chief 1 Datuk Seri R. Ramanan have also announced their candidacies for vice-president posts.
The Concorde Club, an informal group of local and foreign journalists that meets monthly with Cabinet Ministers and policymakers, is chaired by Bernama chairman Datuk Seri Wong Chun Wai.
Also present at today’s meeting was Bernama editor-in-chief Arul Rajoo Durar Raj.
