COMMENTARY, Oct 21 — Pakatan Harapan (PH) has named Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim as their prime minister candidate.

Anwar is set to recapture the Tambun parliament seat as the incumbent MP Datuk Seri Ahmad Faizal Azumu jumped over to Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) in 2020, two years after winning the seat on the Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) ticket.

PH has not given up hope on the fight to win Putrajaya after the debacle of the Sheraton Move leading to them being ousted after just a little over a year at the helm.

PH was devastated but Anwar was more so as he had been named and prepared for the PM post which Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad had promised to hand over to him.

Not giving up on Anwar, PH again picked him as its poster boy for the upcoming general election. Parties within PH — DAP, Parti Negara (Amanah) and Anwar’s own PKR — seem to have faith in his ability to lead and turn the country’s economy around.

Anwar has the charisma as a leader, is internationally known and recognised by a network of international corporations and politicians.

He successfully pioneered a multiracial party and became a force that threatened the country’s many race-based parties.

DAP is also multiracial but unfortunately it became Chinese dominated.

Anwar managed to overcome these obstacles but unfortunately the country’s political landscape denied him the chance to pursue his objectives.

With the general election to be held on November 19, PH has again backed Anwar to lead the country.

He has to contend with his party’s decline in support and the more complicated political ground given the many players as well as new young voters and the rejection of DAP by the Malays.

Winning Tambun looks easy for Anwar but to carry PH to a level where he can step into Putrajaya is a gigantic task.

Anwar’s name recognition among young voters is not a problem but to rally them behind him will be an uphill battle.

Despite having the traits of a prime minister, he has to do more to make them see beyond appearances.