PETALING JAYA: The resignation of Subang MP Wong Chen from PKR may signal more than internal friction, raising questions about leadership cohesion and Pakatan Harapan’s ability to retain its elected representatives, say analysts.
Universiti Sains Malaysia’s Prof Datuk Dr Sivamurugan Pandian said the key question for PKR was whether other dissatisfied elected representatives would also resign.
“Wong Chen’s move would suggest that the issue has moved beyond an individual disagreement into a wider question of political alignment within PKR.
“Five PKR MPs have already publicly raised concerns over the party’s handling of access to parliamentary constituency resources,” said Sivamurugan.
He was referring to four other disgruntled PKR MPs – Lee Chean Chung (Petaling Jaya), Rodziah Ismail (Ampang), S. Kesavan (Sungai Siput) and Zahir Hassan (Wangsa Maju) – who issued a joint statement on Saturday over the lack of constituency funds following their attendance at a Bersama party event with Pandan MP Rafizi Ramli.
PKR deputy president Rafizi officially resigned from the party on May 18 and co-founded Bersama.
Sivamurugan also said Wong Chen’s resignation should not simply be labelled as part of “Rafizi’s faction”.
“Wong Chen now potentially represents the next phase, where the disagreement is no longer confined to the party leadership but is affecting elected representatives and the party’s grassroots legitimacy,” he said.
He said the situation was currently more politically damaging than numerically threatening to PKR and the current administration.
“The immediate parliamentary majority may remain intact, but the bigger problem is the perception of internal fragmentation within the party at the core of the government.
“For PKR, it raises questions about leadership cohesion and its ability to retain prominent elected representatives,” he added.
Sivamurugan noted that the danger posed by Wong Chen’s resignation was cumulative erosion rather than an immediate collapse of the Pakatan-led administration.
“One resignation can be explained as an individual decision.
“Three or more begins to look like a pattern,” he said.
Prof Wong Chin Huat of Sunway University said that the Subang MP’s departure would not necessarily trigger a by-election in Subang.
“There will be no by-election in the last two years of a Parliament’s five-year term unless the vacancy may affect the government’s majority, which is not the case for Wong Chen,” said Prof Chin Huat.
In a statement issued yesterday, Wong Chen said he had handed his resignation letter to Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Johari Abdul on Aug 5.
“This was to allow parliamentary officers three working days to prepare for the vacancy of the Subang parliamentary seat.
“We had a gentleman’s agreement not to release any details until Aug 10 at 5pm,” he said.
He added that he would hold a press conference this Wednesday at 11am to explain his decision further.
Wong Chen was first elected to the Kelana Jaya seat in 2013 before being re-elected to the renamed Subang constituency in 2018 and November 2022.
