William Leong’s supporters want him to defend seat

PETALING JAYA: Supporters of PKR lawmaker William Leong have urged the Selayang MP to defend his seat in the coming general election.
 
Selayang PKR grassroots leader Shaharuddin Abu Bakar said this was despite Leong’s previous announcement that he did not want to be named as candidate.
 
He said Leong has a proven track record in serving the parliamentary constituency for two terms.
 
“We are confident that Leong is the best candidate for Selayang as he has solved a lot of problems for the people.
 
“He has our undivided support as a candidate, and we believe he could win with even bigger majority this time,” Shaharuddin told reporters at PKR headquarters here Thursday (Jan 18) before submitting a memorandum to PKR president Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail.
 
Shahruddin also said that Leong has the support from Selayang PKR division and 38 non-governmental organisations in the constituency.
 
He said Leong has built good ties with local councillors and enforcement officers throughout his terms. 
 
“We believe there is no other better candidate than him,” he said.

Last year, Leong voiced his intention not to defend his seat as he was unhappy with PKR’s cooperation with PAS over seat negotiation.
 
He had also resigned from the party’s political bureau while remaining a supreme council member and a party member. 
 
On whether they would end up not backing another candidate apart from Leong, Shaharuddin said their loyalty to the party remained a priority.
 
“It is up to the top leadership to decide who the candidate will be and we will still support the decision.
 
“But we believe the party would receive an even bigger majority if Leong is given a chance to defend his seat as he has performed well as an elected representative,” he said.
 
A practising lawyer, Leong won with 3,567-vote majority against Barisan Nasional in the 2008 general election and won with a bigger majority of 17,958 votes in 2013 general election.