Meru state assemblyman Mohd Fakhrulrazi Mohd Mokhtar has left Parti Amanah Negara (Amanah) for PKR.
Selangor Amanah secretary Kamarul Hisham Yeop Hashim in a statement today confirmed Mohd Fakhrulrazi’s resignation and thanked his contributions to the party.
“And with immediate effect, all positions held by Mohd Fakhrulrazi in Amanah are vacant. Selangor Amanah thanks him for his contributions to the party.”
When contacted, Fakhrulrazi said that Amanah had yet to relay the news to him and that he only read its statement on social media.
“After the news about me (leaving the party) went viral on social media, in less than 24 hours, they (the party) made their decision. What can I say?” he said.
When pressed to clarify if he had indeed left Amanah for PKR, he said: “I did not declare (I was doing so), but if that’s the party’s decision, then I accept it.”
Fakhrulrazi assured that he will give his full explanation when the time is right as there is no black-and-white agreement yet between him and any future party that he will join.
“I don’t dare to confirm. Besides, what has been said was (speculated) on social media. As long as there is no black-and-white agreement, I cannot say anything.”
For now, the Meru representative said he would only focus on serving the people and fulfil his mandate as an assemblyperson.
Prior to joining Amanah in late 2015, Fakhrulrazi was the PAS Youth treasurer.
In the last general election, Fakhrulrazi won the Meru state seat with a 9,608-vote majority, defeating Barisan Nasional’s Khairul Anuar Saimun, Pas’ Noor Najhan Mohamad Salleh, Parti Rakyat Malaysia’s S Manikavasagam and independent candidate Alex She Chee Weng.
As PKR and Amanah are under the same coalition alongside DAP, Pakatan Harapan’s majority in the state remains at 41.
Meanwhile, Amanah leader Khalid Samad has conceded that the party cannot stop anyone from leaving the party but says elected representatives should know the party has entrusted them to further their cause.
“We cannot prevent anyone from leaving, but as an assemblyman, he should consider that he was entrusted by the party to further our cause and message.
“This, of course, proves that we made a mistake in choosing him as our representative,” he said, adding that they will be more careful in selecting candidates in the future.
Despite being let down, Khalid, who is Shah Alam MP, wished Fakhrulrazi luck in his future.
Amanah president Mohamad Sabu had in July described party-hopping as “disgusting” and called for a law to curb the practice.
PKR has filed civil suits against some of its elected representatives who had switched parties which led to the fall of the Pakatan Harapan government at the federal level and four state governments earlier this year.