PETALING JAYA: Batu MP Tian Chua will not defend his PKR vice-president post in the party elections in May.

       Tian Chua, who has been holding the post since the formation of PKR in 1999, said he was doing this to let cooler heads prevail within the party.

       "I am not quitting politics and will be defending the Batu division chief post.

       “I was one of the four vice-presidents but three of them have left," he said when contacted Sunday (March 27).

       He said with the 15th general election approaching, there was a need to focus on rebuilding work on the ground.

       "For me, having a feverish situation within our party elections would distract us from our bigger goal, which is to accomplish what we did in GE14.

       "As a senior, I feel it is important to set the tone right and reduce the current tension," he said, adding that if every party member wanted to contribute, it was best to operate within their capacities.

       He said the need to reverse the internal election fever was more important at the moment.

       "Our party has been quite split since the Sheraton Move and I have been associated with (Datuk Seri) Azmin Ali.

       "A lot of younger members may try to use this but why do we need to?" he asked, saying that the party must be united.

       He said the Johor state election already showed the effects of a fragmented opposition.

       "I'm not saying that accomplishing what we did in GE14 is not going to be an uphill battle, but it is also not impossible," he said.