Fighters became spectators. No direction, no strategy, no fire left in the belly. They begged Rafizi to return. He came back – not for position, but for Malaysia.

With INVOKE’s razor-sharp data, he launched Ayuh Malaysia. He travelled the country non-stop. He built wave after wave. He crafted perfect strategic narratives. He rebuilt morale from the ashes. He promised 80 seats in GE15. Everyone laughed. “Too ambitious,” they said. He delivered 82.

He told Anwar Ibrahim to contest Tambun – a seat analysts called political suicide. They said Rafizi wanted to bury Anwar. Anwar trusted him anyway. Anwar won big. From the ruins of opposition, they marched into Putrajaya. Rafizi became the man behind the throne: the strategist, the war general, the commander-in-chief of elections, the wave-maker, the mobiliser, the voice that moved millions.

He delivered. Quietly. Relentlessly. Effectively. Then he started pushing – politely, professionally – for real reform. And that’s when they decided he had to go. They kicked Rafizi out for five fatal reasons: 1.He wanted reform fast. They wanted business as usual.

2.He is a man of principle who tolerates zero nonsense and zero corruption. They wanted to cari makan – shares, appointments, contracts, projects, slush funds, and surat sokongan. 3.He became too influential, too competent, too popular. The higher powers felt threatened – just like ancient emperors who murdered the loyal generals who put them on the throne.

4.He wanted to honour the manifesto he himself drafted in 2018. They wanted to U-turn on every single promise the moment they smelled power and profit. 5. He wanted to protect and strengthen PH’s core base – the M40, progressive Malays, the Indians , Anak Sabah, Anak Sarawak, and the Chinese community. They wanted to chase the walaun vote – the PAS fanatic base – even if it meant abandoning everyone who actually voted PH into power.

And the final sin? Rafizi refused to play “Cash is King”. No projects for cronies. No envelopes. No dana under the table. Then he started advising the Prime Minister – politely, professionally – on one issue after another. Anwar smiled in front, but did the opposite behind. Trust eroded. Advice was ignored. Warnings were dismissed.

It culminated in the ultimate betrayal: Anwar gave his blessings for his own daughter, Nurul Izzah, to lead a coup in the PKR party election to dethrone Rafizi and his entire reform team. The message was clear: blood is thicker than competence. Meanwhile, his opponents in PKR – the so-called “Team Damai” – mocked him during the party election:

“We don’t need Rafizi.” “We don’t need INVOKE.” “We don’t need big data or think tanks.” “PKR can survive another 100 years!” “We’ll win more than 80 seats from our current 31 – easy!” “Our data is better. J-KOM is enough for strategic communication.” Six months later – just six months without Rafizi – Pakatan Harapan contested 20 seats in the Sabah state election. They won one. And even that one came via a defector, not their own strength. Total annihilation. Total humiliation. A historic extinction-level event.

When Rafizi was Deputy President and PKR Election Director, Anwar Ibrahim never once had to campaign in more than 13 by-elections after GE15. The machinery ran like clockwork. In Sabah, they had two PKR election directors (Nurult Izzah and Saifuddin Nasution), plus Anwar himself flying in last-minute to “save” the campaign. Result? 1 out of 20.

One Rafizi was worth more than Anwar + Nurul Izzah + Saifuddin Nasution + Amiruddin Shaari combined. All the scandals now exploding – Farhash, Shamsul Iskandar, Fadhlina’s incompetence as Education Minister – Rafizi had warned Anwar about them privately, again and again. Anwar didn’t listen.

Six months ago, INVOKE data showed PH had already lost 32% of Chinese support and 38% of Indian support. They laughed. Called it fake. Said Rafizi was exaggerating. Sabah’s Chinese majority seats? Wiped out. Exactly as predicted. When PKR announced its candidates, Rafizi reminded them: this is about Reformasi, not Reformanan or Reformusa. They called him “kuat merajuk”. Too sensitive.

So they chopped him. Now Shamsul Iskandar – the man who called Rafizi “pemimpin sialan” – has become the real curse that buried PH in Sabah. Every time Rafizi tried to help, the DAMAI cybertroopers, paid professors, and loyalist writers were sent to slander him. They even dared him to leave and form his own party. He left.

And now the dominoes fall: Sabah today, Sarawak tomorrow, Peninsular Malaysia the day after. This time, Rafizi is not coming back. Once bitten, twice shy.

Anwar can promote his daughter all he wants. He can dream of a family dynasty. But what is the point of ruling over a kingdom of ashes? Without Rafizi Ramli and his big data, PKR is lost. Pakatan Harapan is bleeding.